Wednesday, 29thJune, 2022

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          Wednesday, 29thJune, 2022

The House met at1430 hours

[MADAMSPEAKER in the Chair]

NATIONAL ANTHEM

PRAYER

_______

RULING BY MADAM SPEAKER

COMPLAINT BY HON. B. M. MUNDUBILE, LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION AND MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR MPOROKOSO CONSTITUENCY, AGAINST HON. S. MULUSA, GOVERNMENT CHIEF WHIP AND MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR SOLWEZI CENTRAL CONSTITUENCY, FOR THE COMMENTS ATTRIBUTED TO HIM IN AN ARTICLE ENTITLED “PATRIOTIC FRONT MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT COME TO PARLIAMENT DRUNK” PUBLISHED IN THE NEWS DIGGERS NEWSPAPER, ISSUE NO. 1094, DATED THURSDAY, 2ND DECEMBER, 2021

Madam Speaker: Hon. Members,I wish to bring to the attention of the House that on Tuesday, 7th December, 2021, my office received a letter of complaint from Hon. B. M. Mundubile, Leader of the Opposition and Member of Parliament for Mporokoso Constituency, against Hon. S. Mulusa, Government Chief Whip and Member of Parliament for Solwezi Central Constituency. The complaint emanates from an article that was published in the News Diggers newspaper, dated 2nd November, 2021, entitled “Patriotic Front Members of Parliament come to Parliament drunk”. In the article, Hon. Mulusa, MP, was alleged to have uttered the following words:

“For some of those people like my brother Honourable [Nickson] Chilangwa, I think most of them are coming drunk. We have a bar there, so the behaviour is not just normal behaviour. They are coming prepared to just say, ‘let us go and do this,’ but we are handling them and we hope that they will change along the way so that they get used to the opposition.”

Hon. Members, Hon. B. M. Mundubile, MP, alleged that the words attributed to Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, in the newspaper article, were not only demeaning, but also amounted to a breach of privilege and contempt of the House. He further stated that the words were meant to create a public perception that hon. Members of the Patriotic Front (PF) political party were drunkards who went to the House with the sole purpose of disrupting proceedings.

Hon. Members, I referred the complaint to the Committee on Privileges and Absences for further investigations.

In line with parliamentary practice and procedure, and in accordance with the rules of natural justice, the Office of the Clerk wrote to Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, requesting him to state his side of the story. In response, Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, stated that on the day that Mr N. Chilangwa, MP, stood without permission and challenged the Hon. Mr Second Deputy Speaker, he had come from the bar at Parliament Buildings, where Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, had seen him consuming alcohol with others. He stated that it was on that basis that he realised that the courage exhibited by the hon. Members of Parliament was influenced by alcohol.

He concluded his letter by stating that it was not his intention to demean the hon. Members of Parliament. He added that his statement was particularly directed at Mr N. Chilangwa, MP, and, therefore, the heading in the article was not correctly attributed to him. He, nonetheless, apologised to the hon. Members of the PF who did not drink alcohol, but were indirectly affected by the newspaper heading.

The Office of the Clerk of the National Assembly also wrote to the Editor-in-Chief of the News Digger newspaper requesting him to state whether the words complained of by Hon. B. M.Mundubile, MP, were correctly attributed to Hon. S. Mulusa, MP. In his response, the Editor-in-Chief confirmed that the statement was correctly attributed to Hon. S. Mulusa, MP.

The House may wish to note that the complaint raised by Hon. B. M. Mundubile, MP, raises the issue of an hon. Member committing a breach of parliamentary privilege or contempt of the House by making a disparaging or demeaning statement against another hon. Member of Parliament.

Hon. Members, Standing Order 207 of the National Assembly of Zambia Standing Orders, 2021, is instructive on this issue. Standing Order 207 provides as follows:

“207. Contempt of the House

      (1)    Contempt of the House refers to an act, omission or conduct, which obstructs or impedes either the

             House or members or officers in the discharge of their duties.

     (2)    In addition to instances under Section nineteen of the National Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act,

            the following, may constitute contempt of the House:

           (a)    a speech or writing reflecting negatively on the House or members;”

Further, eminent writers on parliamentary practice and procedure, S. L. Shakdher and M. N. Kaul in their book entitled Practice and Procedure of Parliament, Seventh Edition, (New Delhi, Lok Sabha, 2016) state, at page 304, as follows:

      “It is a breach of privilege and contempt of the House to make speeches, or to print or publish any libels,

       reflecting on the character or proceedings of the House or its committees, …

      speeches and writings reflecting on the House or its committees or members are punished by the House as

      contempt on the principle that such acts “tend to obstruct the Houses in the performance of their functions

      by diminishing the respect due to them.”

Hon. Members, the Committee on Privileges and Absences met and deliberated on this matter on Thursday, 16th June, 2022. During its deliberations, the Committee had recourse to the letter of complaint and the responses from Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, and the Editor-in-Chief of the News Diggers newspaper. Further, both Hon. B. M. Mundubile, MP, and Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, appeared before the Committee and made oral submissions.

Hon. Members, after due consideration of the matter, the Committee established the following:

       (a)   that Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, did make disparaging remarks against Mr N. Chilangwa, MP, and PF hon.

              Members of Parliament; and

      (b)    that Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, readily apologised for his conduct and was remorseful and, therefore, did not

              waste the Committee’s time.

In that regard, the Committee found Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, in breach of parliamentary privilege and contempt of the House for making disparaging statements against Mr N. Chilangwa, MP, and PF hon. Members of Parliament.

Hon. Members, in arriving at the punishment to be meted out to Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, the Committee noted that he did not waste its time as, in his letter of response, he readily apologised for the statement that was published in the newspaper and to the PF hon. Members who did not drink as well as the entire PF leadership.

The Committee, therefore, decided to exercise leniency and resolved that Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, be given a formal warning in accordance with Section 28(4) of the National Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act.

Hon. Members, I carefully considered the complaint and the recommendation of the Committee on Privileges and Absences. I agreed with the findings of the Committee that Hon. S. Mulusa, MP’s conduct amounted to a breach of parliamentary privilege. I further endorsed the recommendation by the Committee that he be given a formal warning. I have, therefore, since issued a formal written warning to Hon. S. Mulusa, MP.

Hon. Members, further, as you are aware, the Committee on Privileges and Absences is charged with, among others, assisting me maintain discipline in the House. In this vein, any hon. Member of the Committee who is found guilty of breaching the rules of the House loses his/her seat on the Committee. To this end, Standing Order 190(6) of the National Assembly of Zambia Standing Orders, 2021 states as follows:

“190.   (6)        Any member of the committee who is found guilty of misconduct shall lose his or her membership to the committee.”

Hon. Members may wish to note that Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, is a Member of the Committee on Privileges and Absences. Therefore, in accordance with Standing Order 190 (6), Hon. S. Mulusa, MP, ceases to be Member of the Committee with immediate effect. The hon. Member to replace him on the Committee will be announced in due course.

I thank you.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

­­­_______

MATTERS OF URGENT PUBLIC IMPORTANCE

MR J. E. BANDA, HON. MEMBER FOR PETAUKE CENTRAL, ON INCREASE OF TEENAGE PREGNANCIES IN PETAUKE CONSTITUENCY

Mr J. E. Banda(Petauke Central): On a matter of urgent public importance, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: A matter of urgent public importance is raised.

Mr J. E. Banda: Madam Speaker, thank you for giving the good people of Petauke this opportunity to raise a matter of urgent public importance regarding school going children in my constituency and Zambia at large. This came to my attention when I was touring some schools in my constituency and I saw that some pupils were pregnant. The number of teenage pregnancy cases being recorded in my constituency is going up every day and when delivering, even maternal death cases are rising every day.

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Order!

Hon. Members, let us give him chance so that we can hear him.

Mr J. E. Banda:Today, we buried one of the victims. Therefore, we need to put measures in place to combat such vices before things escalate.

Madam Speaker, I feel supporting sports activities in schools can be one of the measures that can help to curb this vice. In a nutshell, I feel it is important that the New Dawn Government funds and reintroduces sports activities in schools.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mung’andu: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

AMB. KALIMI, HON. MEMBER FOR MALOLE, ON PREVALENCE OF SCABIES IN MALOLE CONSTITUENCY

Amb. Kalimi (Malole): On a matter of urgent public importance, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: A matter of urgent public importance is raised.

Amb. Kalimi: Madam Speaker, thank you very much for giving me and the great and humble people of Malole this opportunity to raise this matter of urgent public importance.

Madam Speaker, as I am talking, in my constituency, thirty-six schools are affected with scabies. In these schools, 775 boys and 738 girls are infected.This is threatening the wellbeing of people and if we just look at this thing, the number will continue increasing.

Madam Speaker, I need your guidance. Thank you.

Madam Speakergave the Floor to Mr Mung’andu.

Mr Mung’andu: Madam Speaker, I rise on a serious point of order –

Madam Speaker: Order!

Hon. Member for Chama South, we are dealing with matters of urgent public importance. So, if you have a point of order, I suggest that you hold on first. Let me deal with these items.

Hon. Member for Petauke Central, I am sure you were in the House when we were considering a report, I think last week, which tackled this issue of teenage pregnancies. I think it was the Report of the Committee on National Guidance and Gender Matters. That issue was spoken about, and the measures on how this problem can be addressed were debated in this House. So, I do not know what has changed now that suddenly there is a matter of urgent public importance which has now arisen from the time that the report was presented and the time you toured your constituency. Considering that the House has been sitting for over a month now, it looks like that tour happened when the House was on recess. So, I do not believe that the matter you have raised qualifies as a matter of urgent public importance.

Hon. Members, as I have guided previously, you are advised to engage the relevant institutions. You being the hon. Member of Parliament in the area, you are aware of what is happening. So, engage the Ministry of Education or the Ministry of Community Development and Social Services to see how you can help the people in your constituency.

The issue of school girls getting pregnant is not a new matter and it is affecting the whole country. It does not only apply to Petauke Central. So, it has to be tackled from a nationalistic character and not just for your constituency. You can find other means of bringing up and raising this issue so that it can be addressed. However, it is a problem that is ongoing and, speaking as a parent, I would not want my children to get pregnant while at school.

The hon. Member for Malole raised the issue of scabies. I happen to have visited that area when Parliament was on recess and I passed through Malole, Lunte and other constituencies.We stopped there on the way and discovered that most children there have scabies. I do not know what is causing that, but as the hon. Member of Parliament, if you are really concerned about your members in the constituency, please, engage the Ministry of Health and see how you can help them. You are raising the matter here on the Floor of this House today and if the Government does not do anything, is anybody going to die today? Is it so urgent that it has to be mentioned today when the problem has been recurring? So, that is not a matter that you can raise as a matter of urgent public importance. Again, find a mechanism to address this issue.

On our way to the Northern Province, we stopped and attended to some children at the junction of Mansa, on Tuta Road, who had scabies. We donated some money and medicine, and encouraged the parents to take the children to the hospital. So, it is a matter of encouraging members of the constituency to go to the hospital when something like that happens. Today, no child should suffer from scabies. Maybe, for us, it was normal when we were growing up because there were no medical facilities. Now that we have hon. Members of Parliament in 156 constituencies, should we surely have children suffering from scabies? If any child suffers from scabies in any constituency, the hon. Member of Parliament for that constituency is not working sufficiently.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Laughter

Madam Speaker:It is time for those hon. Members, in whose constituencies where there are children with scabies, to introspect.

Mr Mung’andu: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: A point of order is raised.

Mr Mung’andu: Madam Speaker, I rise on a serious point of order pursuant to Standing Order No. 210, which talks about the failure to attend sittings of the House.

Madam Speaker, it is the practice of this august House that parliamentary work takes precedence over any other work that hon. Members might have. I have noticed and I am very disappointed that hon. Ministers in the United Party for National Development (UPND) Government, if you have noticed, …

Hon. UPND Members: Question!

Mr Chikote: Who? We are here!

Mr Mung’andu: …rarely attend Parliament, especially – hon. Minister of Fisheries and Livestock, this is a fact. We want to see our hon. Ministers seated here...

Hon. UPND Members: They are there.

Mr Mung’andu: ... so that we interact with them. They must answer questions and the Zambians who have given them the mandate to manage the affairs of this country should be seeing them seated in this Chamber. However, hon. Ministers are worrying me and the people of Chama South. We usually see the same hon. Ministers, and Her Honour the Vice-President is always here, and I can mention a few others. For the rest, from the time that President Hakainde Hichilema gave them ministerial positions, they have abandoned Parliament.

Interruptions

Mr Mung’andu: Madam Speaker, are they in order to be absconding from the most important wing of the Government, which takes precedence over any other wing, including their Executive functions? Are they in order to miss Parliament because we would want to see them seated here? The people of Zambia would want to see them seated here interacting with you.

I seek your serious ruling, Madam Speaker.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member for Chama South, thank you for that point of order. Indeed, as you have rightly pointed out, parliamentary work takes precedence over all matters. The only time that hon. Ministers or hon. Members of Parliament are excused from attending proceedings in the House is when they ask for permission when they are given an assignment outside the country. So, it is only those hon. Ministers who sought for permission and were granted permission upon notification, who have not attended Parliament. If there are any other hon. Ministers who have continuously absconded from the House, I am not aware of those and thehon. Member has not stated which particular hon. Ministerhas not been attending Parliament. So, under those circumstances, I am unable to pinpoint any particular hon. Minister who has absconded continuously, but the point of order that you have raised is very important and it has reminded hon. Ministers that parliamentary work takes precedence over all other matters.

Thank you very much.We can make progress.

Mr Katakwe: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: A point of order is raised.

Mr Katakwe: Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order pursuant to Standing Order No. 204, on parliamentary decorum and etiquette.

Madam Speaker, when you were making a ruling whilst standing in front of your Chair, the hon. Member for Mpika Central walked in and sat down. If we tolerate this kind of indiscipline, this House risks being degraded in termsof its decorum. Was the Member, Hon. Kapyanga, in order to walk in whilst you were making a ruling?

Madam Speaker, I seek a serious ruling.

Mr Sing’ombe: Suspend him for one month.

Hon. PF Members: Question!

Madam Speaker: Order!

Let us make progress. We have a lot of work to do today.

Hon. PF. Members: Hear, hear!

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member for Solwezi East, your point of order is noted. If, indeed, the hon. Member for Mpika Central walked in while I was standing and reading the ruling, he was completely out of order.

Hon. Members of Parliament have been guided accordingly that when the Speaker is standing and delivering a ruling or when the procession is on, there should be total silence, but some hon. Members keep on going back to old habits. It appears old habits never die, but at the rate that we are going, if an hon. Member is visited with sanctions, please, do not complain because you have been sufficiently warned that you have to comply with the Standing Orders and ensure that there is discipline and decorum in the House.

Thank you very much.

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MINISTERIAL STATEMENTS

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FARMER INPUT SUPPORT PROGRAMME FOR THE 2022/2023 AGRICULTURAL SEASON

The Minister of Agriculture(Mr Mtolo): Madam Speaker, I thank you most sincerely for this opportunity to issue a ministerial statement on the 2022/2023 Agricultural Season.

Madam Speaker, it is important that we inform the nation on the preparations we are making for the 2022/2023 Agricultural Season. The statement will also respond to a point of order raised by Hon. R.K. Chitotela, the Member of Parliament for Pambashe Parliamentary Constituency.

Madam Speaker, the Cabinet, at its fourth special meeting held on 22nd November, 2021, resolved that the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) migrates to a cost effective and enhanced electronic agro-input system beginning from the 2022/2023 Agricultural Season. However, the Russian-Ukraine conflict has affected the supply of fertiliser on the world market and caused a drastic increase in prices. The implementation of an electronic agro-input system will require the private sector to take upfront the risk of importing the fertiliser and stocking it in various outlets countrywide. This poses a threat of non-supply of fertiliser to farmers as huge financial resources will be required by the private sector to mobilise the required quantities.

Madam Speaker, given this uncertainty, the Government has decided that for the 2022/2023 Farming Season, theFISP will be implemented using the Direct Input Supply (DIS) modality. The following will be the considerations:

   (a)   total of 1,024,434 farmers will benefit from the programme. This number is exactly as of last year’s

          beneficiaries and the farmer contribution will remain at K400;

   (b)   revision of the input pack under the programme as follows:

        (i)  a total of six bags of fertiliser per farmer will be given, out of which three will be basal dressing and three

             will be top dressing;

       (ii)  a 10 kg of maize seed will be given to all the beneficiaries; and

      (iii)  a supplementary pack of either 1 x 25 kg soya beans seed or 1 x 20 kg groundnut seed will be given to

           half of the group each, meaning 500,000 farmers will get soya beans and the other 500,000 will get

           groundnuts.

   (c)  introduction of the use of biometrics at farmer registration and input collection stages.

Madam Speaker, I am happy to inform the House and this respective Chamber thatthe ministry has commenced procurement of inputs for the 2022/2023 Agricultural Season. The ministry will continue updating the public on the progress of the procurement process and when farmers will begin making deposits towards the FISP.

Madam Speaker, the ministry, together with the Smart Zambia Institute, has also embarked on the beneficiary register verification exercise in order to ensure that only eligible beneficiaries are registered and benefit from the programme.

Madam Speaker, as I conclude my very brief ministerial statement, I wish to state that the Government will continue supporting the small-scale farmers with inputs. The proposed implementation modality is expected to contribute to the enhancement of access to quality fertiliser and certified seed by the farmers. This will in turn lead to improved production and productivity and enhanced national and household food and nutritional security.

Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Members for listening very attentively.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Madam Speaker: Hon. Members are now free to ask questions on points of clarification on the ministerial statement issued by the hon. Minister of Agriculture. As we ask those questions, please, let us be precise and to the point so that we allow other hon. Members also to ask questions.

Mr Mung’andu (Chama South): Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Minister for that ministerial statement.

Madam Speaker, farmers, particularly in rural constituencies, have been getting fertiliser for years.The Government had intentions of graduating these farmers after three years so that other farmers who are not getting the inputs should also be put on that programme. Throughits verification exercise, is the ministry identifying new beneficiaries or will it maintain the same ones who have been benefitting from the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) from its inception?

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Chama South for that question.

Madam Speaker, the answer is, yes, to the best of our ability, we are checking and continuously verifying to ensure that the farmers who have continuously benefited can now give chance to others.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Miyutu (Kalabo Central): Madam Speaker, tracing the records of the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP), it indicates that Kalabo is among the districts I would call the least in terms of beneficiaries. Ever since this exercise started or from its inception, – the coming in of the New Dawn Government gave us hope that the programme will be reviewed in order to benefit the people.

Mr Kapyanga:Hammer!

Mr Miyutu: Madam Speaker, we do not want to be disappointed. Is this verification …

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Order!

Mr Miyutu:… verbal or is it practical on the ground to make sure that thecitizens who have never benefited are now availed a chance to benefit from the national resources? We cannot continue waiting in vain. When is the practical verification, which the people in Kalabo are waiting for, going to take place?

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Members! Time is running out. I do not know now whether this is in line with the Farmer Input Support Programme or politics that we are doing.

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, I really appreciate the question asked by the hon. Member for Kalabo Central.

Madam Speaker, it is such questions that we need in this country for it to develop. We need this type of passion for this country to develop. We need every hon. Member in this House, including my good friend, the hon. Member from Kalabo, to participate in this activity and I will explain how.

Madam Speaker, each constituency has wards. The wards are broken down into zones, and in these areas, we have leaders. In certain areas, we have chiefs and ward councillors, and in other areas, we have all sorts of leaders, including the Church.

Madam Speaker, if hon. Members committed to get involved through the system which brings them to this House, we would not have had the same people getting fertiliser over and over again for years. However, if we do not participate, unfortunately, the hon. Member for Kalabo Central will, indeed, have the same people collecting fertiliser. Let us all get involved. The verification exercise we will do will be very scientific. It is based on a very credible status, but it cannot beat the involvement of the hon. Members in this House. So, I am greatly indebted for that lovely question from the hon. Member for Kalabo Central because it helps us at the ministry to do the right thing.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member for Chama North, have you recovered? I heard that you were not feeling well.

Mr Mtayachalo (Chama North): I am much better today, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker, I want to put on record, being a Member of the Committee on Agriculture, Lands and Natural Resources, that when we went throughout the country, the people preferred the Direct Input Supply (DIS) modality, and I commend the Government for taking that step because it is the preferred option for the majority farmers in this country.

Madam Speaker, we are in July, and we expect farmers to start receiving their farming inputs in July and August. In his ministerial statement, the hon. Minister said that farmers will be advised when to start contributing the K400. Can the hon. Minister assure the people of Chama North, and the people of this country, whether fertiliser will be distributed on time and that farmers will not get the fertiliser next year.

Mr Mtolo:Madam Speaker, I rest assure my colleague, the Member of Parliament for Chama North, Hon. Mtayachalo, that, yes, fertiliser will be given on time, and we are very certain about what we are doing. Let me also let the House know that, today, marked the last day and closure of receiving bids from the people who would like to supply fertiliser to this country.

Mr Kapyanga:Lelo?

Mr Mtolo: Yes, today was the last day, and we are very certain that in the few days to come, we would have completed the exercise and informed the suppliers to give us the fertiliser.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Sing’ombe (Dundumwezi): Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Minister for the statement.

Madam Speaker, what is the Government doing to ensure that farmers, especially in Dundumwezi, who never received fertiliser from the previous Government, but paid K400,000 per co-operative, receive the fertiliser?

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, we have taken that into account. Those farmers will all be considered, as long as they paid, and they will receive fertiliser.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr J. Chibuye (Roan): Madam Speaker, Roan Constituency, today, has become a food basket due to many instances where we have been hit below thebelt economically, and they are not exceptional to this subject. The hon. Minister has stated clearly that the procurement process has started and that, today, the bids have been closed. What will be the lead-time to ensure that the people of the EasternProvince, this year, do not receive fertiliser, especially topdressing, when the maize reaches the tassel stage?

Madam Speaker, is the hon. Minister not considering–

Madam Speaker: Order! Only one question, hon. Member, so that other –

Mr J. Chibuye: With your indulgence, Madam Speaker, it is a ride up.

Madam Speaker: Other hon. Members also want to ask questions. I have a list of twenty-one hon. Members.

Mr J. Chibuye: Just for this one, Madam Speaker, I beg you.

Laughter

Madam Speaker: No, I do not want to create a precedent, hon. Member.

Mr J. Chibuye: Madam Speaker, I just wanted to find out if at all the Government through–

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Member!

Laughter

Madam Speaker: The hon. Member is now out of order. The hon. Minister may answer the first question.

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, I assure the hon. Member for Roan, just as I assured the hon. Member for Dundumwezi, that the fertiliser will be given on time. I assure him that because of the transparent nature in which we are implementing this programme, we will not have a repeat of what happened, where farmers in certain areas did not receive fertiliser. So, I assure the hon. Members that the Government is workinghard for their benefit and to ensure that the farmers succeed. This is a very serious issue and the small-scale farmers are feeding us. Ninety-six per cent of last year’s production came from the small-scale farmers. Therefore, we are not going to make a mistake. Otherwise, we will have problems.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Kampyongo(Shiwang’andu): Madam Speaker, Icommend the hon. Minister for announcing that thetender has closed and we hope not to see the single sourcing of fertiliser that we saw last year.

Interruptions

Mr Kampyongo: Madam Speaker, the President, who is also a farmer, gave hope to the farmers and assured them that they would receive more bags than they used to receive. Is the President happy with the number of bags the Government has offered the farmers in this farming season?

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Members!

Let us not debate from our seats because if we are not careful, we can move to the next item.So, let us obey the rules and allow only one person to speak at a time, the hon. Minister to answer and hon. Members should pay attention.

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, first of all, I thank the hon. Member for Shiwang’andu for his kind words, especially that he has taken note that a very transparent process has been put in place. I am grateful for that observation. Weare not going to single source. That has gone with the past.

Madam Speaker, for me to come and stand here and give this information with the confidence that I have, means that the Cabinet of the Republic of Zambia sat to look at what I am discussing. Therefore, the President, who chairs Cabinet meetings, is fully aware and is happy withthe information I am giving to the nation through your House, Madam Speaker.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr B. Mpundu: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: A point of order is raised. Stop the clock.

Mr B. Mpundu: Madam Speaker, Standing Order No. 65 dictates that the information provided on the Floor must be accurate.

Madam Speaker, Nkana is not a farming constituency, but I have studied farming activities and I can present these as facts. The Southern Province and the Eastern Province are the biggest producers of our grain. If you look at theEastern Province–

Madam Speaker: Order!

Hon. Member for Nkana, you are rising on a point of order and you said that there is a breach, but you have not stated the breach. How has that rule been breached?

Mr B. Mpundu: Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister of Agriculture responded to a question regarding whether the ministry will manage to supply farming inputs to places like the Eastern Provincein time. It remains a fact that the distribution of inputs to the Eastern Province requires time because of the lack of a rail system to move bulk fertiliser from Beira.The record speaks, and we know that the Eastern Province is supplied with over 600,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser. For the distribution to be successful and to reach all the corners of the Eastern Province, because of the movement of trucks, the exercise must start in April,and that has been the practice over the years.

Madam Speaker, is it correct and factual for the hon. Minister to tell the House that the distribution of fertiliser will reach all corners of the Eastern Province? This is June going into July, and the exercise has only reached the level of awarding contracts. Is the hon. Minister in order to tell this House that the ministry will manage to deliver fertiliser on time, arising from the question, as to whether the ministry will manage to successfully deliver fertiliser? Is he in order to do that because that is misleading looking at the time left for the fertiliser to reach the farmers? Is he in order to mislead this House?

Madam Speaker: Hon. Members, I see this tendency by hon. Members of raising points of order relating to whether a statement issued on the Floor of the House is factual or not. The only challenge I have with those hon. Members who raise these points of order is that they have not produced credible evidence to contradict the information issued on the Floor of this House. I have no proof of whether what the hon. Minister or hon. Member said is truthful, but I believe the hon. Minister –

Mr B. Mpundu: The information is on my phone.

Madam Speaker: Order,hon. Member!

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: I am left with no option but to go with what the hon. Minister said. If the hon. Member has information to prove that what the hon. Minister said is not correct, then, he should lay the evidence on the Table. Otherwise, the hon. Member is also misleading the House in the process. So, when a point of order is raised, evidence should be laid on the Floor of the House to prove that what is being said is not correct. That way, it will be easy for me to make a ruling.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwila (Mufulira): Madam Speaker, in Mufulira, and I am sure in most places across the country, some people registered co-operatives, and for the last two or three seasons, they were waiting to be put on the support programme but were left out. Now that the hon. Minister has said that the programme with be reviewed to remove those who have consistently been receiving inputs to provide room for the new ones, this has given hope to the people of Mufulira and many other places that there is a chance that they will benefit from the support programme this year.

Madam Speaker, is the hon. Minister able to share the criteria that will be used to remove and include the farmers, and what will be our role, as hon. Members of Parliament, in our respective constituencies?

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Mufulira for that question.

Madam Speaker, regarding the last part of the question, I took time to explain how as hon. Members of Parliament, we can contribute to this exercise. So, I will not repeat myself.

Madam Speaker, the hon. Member said that I should explain how we are excluding farmers and how we are including farmers. On the exclusion process, first of all, we want to make sure that there are no ghost farmers. So, we have picked information, for example, from the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) and mapped it with the names that we have under the FISP. That in itself excludes a number of people who should not be there. However, not everyone is a registered voter so now we are taking this same information and putting it on the National Registration Card (NRC) information. We are placing this information and mapping it with all types of information that is already collated in the country. That way, we will be able to identify that we are dealing with the right farmers and farmers who are alive, or, at least, people who exist.

Madam Speaker, secondly, we are taking this information – and this is important for all those civil servants who are trying to get themselves involved in this. Before they get into trouble, they should go and have their names taken out because, eventually, the system will catch up with them. We are using the same information from the FISP and mapping it to the information of all civil servants, which is at the cabinet office. So, anyone who is a civil servant will be traced instantly.

Madam Speaker, we expect this exercise on its own to take out a number of people and to give room to the new co-operatives, as has been described by the hon. Member for Mufulira. His status is common in the whole country. Most new co-operatives were being told, for four to six years, that there was no space, but this time, we will bring them on board. Every hon. Member who has names of new and genuine co-operatives, should take them to the District Agriculture Co-ordinator (DACO) so that they can be included. In the process of inclusion, hon. Members of Parliament become absolutely vital and useful.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mrs Munashabantu (Mapatizya): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving the people of Mapatizya a chance to add a voice on agriculture and the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP), Mapatizya being a rural and farming constituency.

Madam Speaker, I thank the United Party for National Development (UPND) Government for bringing equity to the FISP.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mrs Munashabantu: We saw in the recent past that some areas were disadvantaged and people in areas like Mapatizya were getting two bags. We hope that, this time around, with equity and the introduction of the use of biometrics, the FISP will reach the last farmer in Mapatizya.

Madam Speaker, coming to my question, I have looked at the options of the FISP. Besides the maize pack, farmers will be given peanuts and soya beans. From my observation and my little knowledge of farming, that is quite limited because not all soils are the same countrywide. Some soils do not support soya beans, and soya beans being a cash crop, I suggest that the Government considers increasing the options to include sunflower or other crops, which can benefit the farmers according to their land.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Mapatizya for her kind words on the issue of equity.

Madam Speaker, in as far as soya beans and groundnuts are concerned, we are guided on where to take which type of crop by the specialists in this country at the Ministry of Agriculture. Unfortunately, it is not possible, at this point, to change from soya beans and groundnuts to any other crops. Maybe, in future, we can get back – if you remember, we used to have sunflower and sorghum on the programme, but this year, because of what is happening in Ukraine and Russia, fertiliser has become so expensive, and even to get to the targeted number, there was a lot of constrain at the Ministry of Finance and National Planning. We can probably look at that in the next agricultural season. For this season, it is not possible to change this configuration.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr E. Banda (Muchinga): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving me an opportunity to speak on behalf of the people of Muchinga, and I thank the hon. Minister of Agriculture for the statement he issued, which has given a lot of hope to the people.

Madam Speaker, we have many issues in terms of transporting farming inputs. Is it still the Government’s position for inputs to be taken to the district level and for people to transport them on their own? I am told that agricultural officers are telling people to pay a lot of money in terms of transport and I have been receiving this complaint. I want the hon. Minister to clarify what the system will be this year. Will it be the same system or are there some changes?

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Order!

What is happening? Hon. Member for Chama South, do you have a complaint?

Mr Mung’andu: On a point of order, Madam.

Madam Speaker: A point of order is raised.

Mr Mung’andu: Madam Speaker, the Minister, Hon. Frank Tayali, is fast asleep at the expense of taxpayers’ money.

Laughter

Mr Mung’andu:We are getting concerned, Madam Speaker, because some hon. Ministers are coming to the Chamber to sleep. They are fast asleep when we are deliberating.

Madam Speaker, I seek your ruling.

Laughter

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Order! Order, hon. Members!

I am sure the hon. Minister was listening quietly to the hon. Members ...

Laughter

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Order!

... especially that we had not heard from the hon. Member for Muchinga. So, may the hon. Minister answer the question.

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, thank you for protecting my brother who was totally awake; I saw him.

Laughter

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker,the hon. Member for Muchinga wishes to know if the modalities of distributing fertiliser will be the same as last year, where farmers will have to go and collect the fertiliser. The answer is yes. It will be done as it was done last year. The fertiliser will not be taken to any other places but to the depots, where the farmers have been collecting from.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Kapyanga (Mpika Central): Madam Speaker, thank you so much for giving the people of Mpika an opportunity to ask the hon. Minister of Agriculture a question.

Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister stated that the Government is distributing farming inputs and that the tender process has closed today.  However, in the statement, the hon. Minister did not state whether the legumes have been removed or not. Can the hon. Minister confirm that this is going to be strictly a maize farming seasoninstead of other crops.The Governmenthas left out a very important aspect of crop diversification where it has removed legumes from theFarmer Input Support Programme (FISP).

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, the hon. Member for Mpika Central was probably not in the House …

Laughter

Mr Mtolo: … when I read the statement because I made it very clear that the one million plus farmers will all get 10 kg of maize and of the 500,000, half will get groundnuts and the other half will get soya beans. It was as clear as that. Instead of accusing Hon. Tayali, those are the people to accuse that they were not here or they were sleeping.

Mr Kapyanga: On apoint of order, Madam.

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member for Mpika Central, just let it pass.

I wanted to give hon. Members more time but it looks like some hon. Members are getting very happy with this session. I think it is time to move on.

Hon. Member:But Madam, we have questions.

Madam Speaker: Okay, I will allow three more questions.I will just follow the sequence.

Dr Mwanza (Kaumbwe): Madam Speaker, thank you very much for giving the people of Kaumbwe a chance to ask the hon. Minister of Agriculture this important question.

Madam Speaker, Kaumbwe is a place that is agricultureoriented. More than 16,700 bags of urea were never collected by the farmers in my constituency. I want a very clear concise answer from the hon. Minister of Agriculture so that when I go to the constituency this weekend, I should tell the farmers the position of the Ministry of Agriculture. Will the ministry refund the farmers the K400 they paid or will it be a carryover for the registered beneficiaries from this new verification exercise?

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, that is a very important question and I will repeat myself.

Madam Speaker, some farmers in certain areas in this country were not given fertiliser not because of time but the suppliers did not manage to supply it, and Kaumbwe is one such area. All those farmers who paid the K400 contribution but did not get fertiliser, will be given. All we will do is to confirm that, indeed, the K400 was received and we will give them fertiliser. That is a very importantposition for parts of the Eastern, Central,Muchinga and Northern provinces. These provinces were affected and some farmers did not collect fertiliser, but they paid their deposit.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Munir Zulu (Lumezi): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving the less privileged farmer of Lumezi an opportunity to ask the hon. Minister a question.

Madam Speaker, I know you took judicial notice that I was not available yesterday. I was in Lumezi and I arrived in the early hours of this morning. I know the hon. Minister knows the terrain very well. I came from ChiefMwanya’s area into –

Madam Speaker: Order!

Hon. Member, just ask your question on a point of clarification. What is your point?

Mr Munir Zulu:  Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister said that the Government will give six bags to each farmer, in the 2022/2023 Farming Season. Some farmers in Lumezi did not receive urea fertiliser, yet they paid their contributions, and the hon. Minister told this House that the Government will consider them this time around. Is there a timeframe attached to those who paid their contributions in the 2021 Farming Season before we get to the 2022/2023 Farming Season?

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker,I thank the hon. Member for Lumezi for yet again bringing this very important item. I will take a little bit of time to explain so that the country can benefit from this important question.

Madam Speaker, there are a number of categories of people who are affected. Firstly, there are those who did not collect any fertiliser. Secondly, there are those who collected one type of fertiliser and not the other. So, what we want to do is toverify who collected what or who did not collect what. For as long as we get confirmation, we will take care of all those farmers who were affected. Let me repeat that they were affected not because of time but some suppliers failed to supply the fertiliser.

Then the question, Madam Speaker, which the hon. Member emphasised, is on time. He asked me to confirm if farmers will be given this product early or given priority before we get to the 2022/2023 Farming Season? Other hon. Membersget it. The answer is no. They will collect the fertiliser at the same time because we do not have fertiliser right now. We will only consider them once the fertiliser comes, when everyone else willcollect the fertiliser.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Chala (Chipili): Madam Speaker, we are almost in July and by the time the suppliers are awarded – Can the hon. Minister confirm if there are some suppliers who already have this commodity? The people of Zambia need assurance because by the time the Government gives the suppliers the contracts, it will probably be August and there will only be three months –

Mr Kafwaya: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker:A point of order is raised.

Mr Kafwaya: Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. My point of order is based on Standing Order No. 65.

Madam Speaker, yesterday, we adopted the Eighth National Development Plan (8NDP), and you may recall that –

Madam Speaker: Sorry, hon. Member. The point of order is against whom?

Mr Kafwaya: The hon. Minister of Agriculture, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker, you may recall that, yesterday, we adopted the 8NDP, and under development area number one, strategy number one was about agriculture development, where the United Party for National Development (UPND) Government promises the country that it will increase agricultural production and productivity. That implies that it will have to offer more support to the agricultural sector. Today, the hon. Minister issued a ministerial statement and said that in the 2022/2023 Farming Season, the UPND Government will give the farmers only three bags of basal dressing fertiliser and three will be top dressing.

Madam Speaker, is that hon. Minister in order (pointing at the hon. Minister) to contradict –

Madam Speaker:Order, hon. Member for Lunte! You have no right to point a finger at another hon. Member.

Mr Kafwaya: I withdraw my finger, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: No, no, no. Please.

Mr Kafwaya: I withdraw my finger, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker:On that ground alone, the hon. Member for Lunte is out of order. May the hon. Member for Chipili continue asking his question.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Munir Zulu: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

Mr Chala:Madam Speaker, looking at time, can the hon. Minister confirm that the suppliers who will be given contracts already have fertiliser in their sheds, so that we do not waste time because there will be no time for them to go and order from wherever they are supposed to order from? Can he confirm that there are some suppliers who have fertiliser in Zambia?

Madam Speaker: Before the hon. Minister answers the question, hon. Member for Lumezi, there cannot be any point of order after another point of order, unless the point of order you are raising is completely different from the one the hon. Member for Lunte was trying to raise. What is the point of order?

Mr Munir Zulu:Madam Speaker, I take you to Standing Order No. 206 on the dress code for hon. Members. We are worried about the hon. Member for Chipili.

Laughter

Mr Munir Zulu: That dress, Madam Speaker, is alarming to this august House. I seek your serious indulgence.

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Order!

From where I am seated and looking at the hon. Member for Chipili, he is dressed very smartly.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Madam Speaker: So, I see nothing wrong with his dress code. May the hon. Minister answer the question.

Mr Mtolo: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Chipili for that question.

Madam Speaker, all the people who have put in their bids know the deadline the Government has set. Therefore, it is not for me to state here as to who has fertiliser in the country and who does not have fertiliser in the country. However, the comfort I can give the hon. Member for Chipili is that the verifying team which will be selecting suppliers will look at those factors, and those bidders who have fertiliser already stationed in certain areas will probably have an advantage, but that is not for me to state; there is a group of professionals managing that.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

RESTOCKING FISH IN NATURAL WATER BODIES WITH LOCAL FISH SPECIES

The Minister of Fisheries and Livestock (Mr Chikote): Madam Speaker, I thank you for giving me the opportunity to deliver this ministerial statement on the topical issue of restocking fish in natural water bodies with local fish species in Zambia. This statement has been necessitated to respond to the point of order raised by the hon. Member of Parliament for Chitambo, when I was responding to Question No. 169 that was asked by the hon. Member of Parliament for Chilubi, Mr Fube, on 18th February, 2022.

Madam Speaker, I wish to refresh the memory of the hon. Members by reading out the key points of the question. The hon. Member asked the following question:

“Whether the Government had any plans to restock Lake Bangweulu with local fish species.”

In your ruling, Madam Speaker, you requested me to come back to the House with a ministerial statement after I had invited hon. Members to come to my office to discuss this matter. Further, I take this opportunity to thank the hon. Members who came to find out more on this matter, and I still invite other hon. Members to come if their questions are not sufficiently addressed by this ministerial statement.

Madam Speaker, the Zambian fisheries have been commercially exploited by our rural communities since the early 1950s. Since the commencement of commercial fishing, many people within the fishing areas and urban areas have benefited from the fisheries resources. It is estimated that more than 1 million people are directly or indirectly benefiting from the fisheries resources. The increase in demand on fisheries resources in the country has resulted in, among others, the following: 

      (a)   depletion of fish stocks in rivers, lakes and other natural water bodies due to excessive fishing pressure;

     (b)   reduced catch up unit effort;

     (c)   loss of habitat for fish due to fishing in fish breeding areas; and

     (d)   increased illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing.

Madam Speaker, depletion of fish stocks is a problem not unique in Zambia. Globally, inland fisheries, especially in the developing world, are experiencing fish stock depletion due to the ever-increasing demand linked to population growth among many other factors. This is also because fish offers the cheapest source of animal protein in these countries. In order to address the challenges of fish stock depletion, restocking of natural water bodies has been attempted by numerous countries, mostly in Asia between 1990 and 2000 scoring varying levels of success.

Madam Speaker, in order to undertake a successful restocking programme, the following considerations need to be taken into account:

      (a)   the fish species inventory of the fishery of interest and the distribution structure of fish species given

            that our fisheries have more than one type of fish species. This is important to avoid over stocking one

            particular fish species which may in turn result in causing ecological imbalances or displacement of

            other equally important aquatic species that may not be able to withstand the competition with the newly

            introduced fish;

     (b)  capacity to successfully breed the required or desirable fish species without compromising the ecological

           biodiversity of fishery once the fish is introduced or stocked into a fishery;

     (c)  prolonged closure of the fishery with a minimal closure period of not less than three years in order to

           ensure that the stocked fish species are well established in a fishery. This may also require designing a

           compensation facility or a mechanism in order to abate the potential loss of livelihoods from fishing

           activities during the closed period, which is very costly;

      (d)  preparedness and buy-in by the community to be affected by the measures;

      (e)  availability of resources such as human, financial and material resources has to be also taken

           into consideration. The high cost implications of breeding fish, transporting and safe guarding them after

           stocking are important elements that need to be adequately planned for prior to undertaking the

           restocking exercise.

Madam Speaker, in Zambia, the first attempt to restock fish was undertaken on Lake Mweru Wantipa during the period of 2005 and 2006. This was prompted by the increasing pressure to find a solution or address the desperate situation of reduced fish catches. As such, there was a call from policy makers and some stakeholders to restock Lake Mweru Wantipa with fish. Unfortunately, due to the pressure, there was insufficient time to undertake the necessary feasibility assessments so as to design an appropriate plan or method of restocking the lake. This attempt did not yield positive results. Another recent attempt to restock Lake Mweru Wantipa was undertaken in 2019. Unfortunately, the recent restocking did not also yield the desirable results for among others, the following reasons:

     (a)  the affected communities and other stakeholders that made demands to restock the lake were not

           adequately engaged to understand the implications of restocking a fishery;

     (b)  the fishermen were not willing to discard their bad fishing methods or practices thus, rendering the whole

            exercise futile;

     (c)   there was not enough time to make key steps or processes such as robust community sensitisation and

            mobilisation, and modalities required to close the fishery and/or compensation during the closure period;

     (d)  some sites that were identified for restocking ended up drying as there was no sufficient time to review

           historical data on water fluctuations of the lake; and

     (e)  there was also lack of willingness and dedicated time from the community members to feed and manage

           the fish that was supposed to be restocked through the use of pens or cages hence the growth

          performance of the fish was poor and the programme was abandoned.

Madam Speaker, given this background, the Government is cautious not to rush the restocking of fish in natural water bodies, but ensure that all the measures that guarantee success are put in place first.

Madam Speaker, considering the drawbacks of implementing the restocking of natural water bodies in Zambia, the Government undertook a cost benefit analysis with strengthened management measures. A restocking programme may require the complete closure of a fishery for a prolonged period that can result in loss of income from fishing and fish trading activities. As such, some form of compensation for the affected people during the period of the closure may be required.

Additionally, the programme to restock a fishery requires huge investment costs to breed, transport and safeguard or protect the stocked fish species. Albeit this huge investment, the success rate of restocking a fishery in most cases is usually very low. On the other hand, simpler and more effective measures such as identifying fish breeding sites that can be closed to fishing while allowing fishing to take place in other areas within a fishery are more economical and sustainable. This does not have a huge significant disruption on people's fishing livelihoods and does not require any compensatory mechanisms.

Madam Speaker, the required resources to invest in the breeding, transportation and safeguarding measures can be channelled towards the acquisition of human and material resources for enforcement and surveillance in order to strengthen management of fisheries resources. Therefore, given the two options, the Government will take the route of identification of fishing breeding sites and protecting them to allow natural multiplication of fish stock as it is a more viable and sustainable option.

Madam Speaker, in view of the aforementioned, the Government is committed to undertaking measures that ensure the continued and sustained availability of stocks of fish for our fishermen and traders on rivers and lakes.In so doing, the Government is undertaking the following interventions:

      (a)  the Government is establishing fishery reserves or fish breeding sites on all our major water bodies for

            improved natural regeneration of fish stocks and population. The rationale for establishing fisheries

            management areas is to ensure that Zambia sustains the contribution of wild stock fish that

            are dependent on natural reproduction and productivity, which are an essential source of food and

            nutrition of riparian fishing communities;

    (b)    the Government is also investing heavily in strengthening community participation in governance and

           management of fisheries resources in Zambia. This is being done through the development of fishery

           specific management plans;

    (c)   my ministry is developing regulations to enforce fisheries management;

    (d)   the Government will continue to enforce the annual fish ban in order to allow fish to breed naturally; and

    (e)  the Government is promoting aquaculture through the provision of growth enabled infrastructure, capacity

         building, affordable financing and an enabling regulatory and policy framework.

Madam Speaker, in conclusion, my ministry appreciates the vital role that the capture fisheries play in the economy and the lives of our people and, therefore, the implementation of measures that ensure sustainable availability of stock of fish in our rivers and lakes is very important. In this regard, the Government shall endeavour to continue fostering development of our capture fisheries through the formulation of appropriate policies and management measures that do not compromise the integrity of our fisheries resources.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

Madam Speaker: Hon. Members are now free to ask questions on points of clarification on the ministerial statement issued by the hon. Minister of Fisheries and Livestock.

Mr Chanda (Kanchibiya): Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Minister for the statement.

Madam Speaker, one of the challenges we have had in the aquaculture industry, especially up north, has been the restrictiveness around the species, looking at the vast water bodies, but the difficulty to translate that into wealth is because of how restrictive some policies are. There are certain species that are not allowed to be farmed in certain areas of the country. Much asthere are issues around environmental considerations, is the Government considering revisiting some of these policies because they are prohibitive to the economic progression of our aquaculture farmers?

Mr Chikote: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Kanchibiya.

Madam Speaker, on the species that are prohibited in certain natural water bodies, there is a reason behind those prohibitive measures the Government has put in place. The reason we have such prohibitions is not that we do not want a certain area to restock such kind of species; they are meant to protect the ecosystem of our rivers. So, we do not just give leeway to our people to stock any specie they want to stock. We are guided by our experts to make sure that the ecosystem of our natural water bodies is protected. Hence, we will not revise things that will affect our communities.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mumba (Kantanshi): Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister mentioned of two attempts that were made by the Government to restock fish and those failed. Are there any new lessons that the ministry has learnt so that, maybe, it can do it correctly because it is unfortunate that as a country, we still have over eighty to ninety thousand metric tonnes of fish deficit putting pressure on importation and on the Kwacha. Has the ministry any particular plans?

Mr Chikote: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for that question.

Madam Speaker, indeed, as the Government, we have other plans that we feel are minimum to maintain but are viable and sustainable. So, there are other plans in which we are pushing our people to increase production of fish. I mentioned in my statement that, as the Government, we are pushing people to invest in aquaculture than pushing for something which will not be viable, and those are the lessons we learnt from our colleagues who attempted to restock fish. They failed because they did not plan very well. So, we will not take the same route. The only route we have decided to take to increase production and meet the deficit of fish in the country is by encouraging and motivating people to invest in aquaculture.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mapani (Namwala): Madam Speaker, my question has been overtaken by events.

Mr Kasandwe (Bangweulu): Madam Speaker, it is very unfortunate that the hon. Minister through his statement has really tried to paint fish restocking in natural water bodies negative by citing the two attempts that failed and also bringing out the issue of costs, compensation and so on and so forth. The examples the hon. Minister gave and the statement he issued reflect the restocking offish that was tried in one lake. If he went to the Bangweulu Wetlands or the Bangweulu fisheries complex, he would discover that, in some areas, there are more than eight lakes. They can possibly try to lock up one or two lakes and leave the others for people to continue fishing. Does the Government intend to, once again, try to restock fish, especially in areas where there are more than five lakes so that others are locked while some are left free, so that the issue of compensation and costs does not arise?

Mr Chikote: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for the question, and I have heard his concerns.

Madam Speaker, on the issue of saying that we are just considering the attempts that others made in one lake other than trying in other natural water bodies, if the hon. Member followed me very well, I said that the Government did assessments of our natural water bodies and it found out that restocking our natural water bodies is not workable. The reasons are very simple; the ones I highlighted in the ministerial statement. There is no way we can push for something we feel and have realised will not achieve any positive results. Hence, we are trying to come up with other interventions to help increase production in our natural water bodies by identifying breeding sites and management areas where we are going to increase surveillance, by bringing on board community participation in order to allow our species to reproduce naturally. These are the measures the Government is putting in place in order to make sure that it solves the issue of depletion of fish in our natural water bodies. We are a committed Government that will always find better ways to help our good people.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Ms Lungu (Chawama): Madam Speaker, one of the challenges that Zambians venturing in the aquaculture industry are facing is that they cannot compete with foreign nationals in the industry, who sometimes give their fish antibiotics and have more than enough money,thereby manipulating the industry. What protection can be guaranteed for our nationals who want to venture into this business?

Mr Chikote: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Chawama.

Madam Speaker, indeed, as we encourage people to invest in aquaculture, there are certain challenges that our locals, especially the small-scale farmers, are facing. There is competition from people with enough money who even produce feed at a cheaper price. So, your listening Government is working round the clock to see how it can protect the small-scale farmers who are just joining the sector or industry, and make them grow. The Government is seriously analysing the issues to find better interventions that will help our small-scale farmers. The idea of making sure that the aquaculture sector is improved depends on our small-scale farmers. We are not focusing on the commercial famers, but our focus is onthe small-scale farmers hence the empowerment programmes being put in place by this listening Government under the leadership of His Excellency, Mr Hakainde Hichilema.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mung’andu: Madam Speaker, I am a proponent of eating organic food. You will agree with me that fish from Kalongola area – When you go to Senanga, you will find very nice and tasty fish along the sand before reaching Kalongola. This country has fresh waters in most of our water bodies where we can breed fish without chemicals and Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) feed, which we are talking about. What is the hon. Minister doing to ensure that he works with his colleague, the hon. Minister of Tourism, who is seated here, when it comes to protecting natural water bodies where fish is being over fished? In some cases, they are using nets, depleting all the good fish which, we, the Zambian citizens, should be eating, then those being kept in cages should be for exports? What is the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock and other ministries doing to ensure that they protect our tasty natural fish which we Zambians should be eating? 

Mr Chikote: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Chama South.

Madam Speaker, I mentioned that we are going to put interventions and mechanisms in our natural water bodies to protect the areas we have identified for natural reproduction. This will enable us make sure that we protect those areas for breeding. This Government will increase surveillance and we are going to equip our officers to make sure that they are able to protect the identified areas. The areas we have identified have to be managed very well. Other than that, we have also decided to bring on board our communities to also participate, so that together we can be able to find solutions which will help us allow our natural fish to reproduce and increase production.

Madam Speaker, we are also encouraging leaders like the hon. Member, who represents the good people of Chama South, to help in sensitising our communities to avoid using wrong methods of fishing and breaking the rules that have been put in place. Together, we can win this battle of enhancing our fish production as the hon. Member described the fish from the Western Province. 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.  

Mr Kampyongo: Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister cited the fish ban as one of the measures put in place to preserve fish in our natural water bodies and allow for breeding. However, the biggest challenge has been the water bodies shared with other neighbouring countries and I have in mind Lake Mweru in Luapula and Lake Kariba. We may observe a fish ban on one side of the border whilst on the other side, people get into the water and stray into our area, and this has been a challenge for quite some time. What is the ministry doing to ensure that there are joint fish bans with the neighbouring countries so that fishermen are not allowed to get in the water at the same time?

Mr Chikote: Madam Speaker, I thank the Member for Shiwang’andu, Hon. Kampyongo.

Madam Speaker, indeed, the challenge that Hon. Kampyongo has just mentioned has been there for some time, especially in the natural water bodies that we share with other countries, and this has been a big challenge. You will find that there is a ban on one side, but on the other side, people continue fishing.

Madam Speaker, as the Government, we have signed to a charter whereby all countries that we share natural water bodies have signed to agree on one mechanism, where when we effect a ban in Zambia, it corresponds with, for example, Tanzania and other countries we share natural water bodies with. So, this has been taken into consideration and we have agreed that no country sharing natural water bodies with Zambia will be allowed to fish on the other side when there is a fish ban. I think that has been given the necessary attention by collaborating with our colleagues with whom we share natural water bodies.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Twasa (Kasenengwa): Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Minister for that elaborate statement.

Madam Speaker, we have so many water bodies that have been depleted and the people of Kasenengwa are excited that we are now talking about restocking. Which water bodies have they targeted to restock? There are so many dams in Kasenengwa that do not have fish, so, we want to know the water bodies they have targeted to restock. 

Mr Chikote: Madam Speaker, this Government has said no to the option of restocking natural water bodies and that is what I read. I said that we have put in place interventions to give species in our natural water bodies space to breed nicely without being disturbed. So, the increase in terms of production will be enhanced by putting in place these measures I explained. I did not say that we are going to restock the natural water bodies. It is quite costly to take that route and it will disturb the ecosystem of our natural water bodies, and that is what I explained. However, I said that we will identify areas that we will protect to allow our fish to produce. That is what I said.  

Madam Speaker, I also said that we are going to engage our communities to participate in the fight against using illegal fishing methods. So, these are some of the interventions that we are going to put in place and we are not going to restock. We are against such a move because we have already learnt from our friends who failed. Two attempts were made and did not yield positive results. However, we will put in place interventions, methods and strategies to manage our natural water bodies.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Elias M. Musonda (Chimbamilonga): Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister alluded to the fact that the ministry attempted to restock in Lake Mweru Wantipa, twice, in 2005/2006 and recently in 2019. He went on to say that the ministry will identify areas where fish can naturally breed. My question is: Since the ministry attempted this exercise in Lake Mweru Wantipa, has it identified the breeding areas? If so, what are these breeding areas?

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Order! Hon. Members who are chatting very loudly, can go outside, and chat and laugh. When you are done, you can come back.

Mr Chikote: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for the question.

Madam Speaker, I said that in our natural water bodies, we will identify breeding sites that will be protected and this is one of the interventions that we will put in place so our fish in natural bodies are not disturbed by fishermen. So, the process of identifying these areas is an ongoing programme depending on the analysis of each and every natural water body that we use, more especially to catch fish. So, that is what we are going to do and even our communities will be involved because they will be part and parcel of the people who will help us manage these areas that will be identified. So, the identification of these areas that we need to protect and see to it that our local species are not disturbed, will be communicated to all the places we feel can make an impact.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

_______

QUESTION FOR ORAL ANSWER

PROLONGED LOAD SHEDDING IN CHAMA DISTRICT

342. Mr Mtayachalo (Chama North) asked the Minister of Energy: 

 

       (a)   whether the Government is aware that the persistent and prolonged load shedding in Chama District

             has resulted in lives being lost at Chama General Hospital and paralysis of economic activities in the

             district; and

       (b)   what urgent measures are being taken to avoid further loss of life and paralysis of economic activities

              in the district.

The Minister of Energy (Mr Kapala): Madam Speaker, the Government is aware of the persistent and prolonged load shedding in Chama District. It should be noted that Chama District is not yet connected to the Zambia national electricity grid. It is supplied power from Malawi by the Electricity Supply Corporation (ESCOM), the Malawi electricity utility company. We are aware that this power supply is erratic and not stable. In this regard, ZESCO Limited operates standby diesel generators, in Chama, which supply power to essential institutions in Chama, including Chama General Hospital. The diesel generators are only operated for a maximum of ten hours in a day, in order to preserve their integrity and prolong their effective lifespan. Accordingly, strategic institutions such as healthinstitutions have been advised to maintain standby generators to help in the event that the supply from ZESCO Limited is not available.

Madam Speaker, in order to ensure security of supply, my ministry will continue to engage the Ministry of Health to provide short-term solutions such as having generators and solar power specifically for the hospital. In the long term, we need Chama District as a whole to be supplied with reliable power in order to spur economic activities in the district. In this regard, the Government, through ZESCO Limited, has constructed a 132 kV overhead line from Chipata through Lundazi to Chama. The next phase is to construct the associated substations along the 132 kV line for power distribution, funds permitting.

Madam Speaker, at the moment, ZESCO Limited is at the procurement phase to engage a contractor to complete the project. The construction of a 10MVA, I32/33kV substation to supply power to Chama District is expected to start in July, 2022, which means next month. The project will be completed in the next twenty-four months so that Chama, Lundazi and all areas along the new line have stable and reliable power supplies and eliminate the current challenge to within acceptable limits.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mtayachalo: Madam Speaker, it is, indeed, true that Malawi supplies power to Chama District and that Chama District is not yet connected to the national electricity grid.

Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister mentioned that ZESCO Limited has been providing power to the district, especially to the hospital, for ten hours. However, the fact of the matter is that Chama District has been experiencing load shedding for twenty hours on average for the last two or three months and I asked the Manager of ZESCO Limited why they do not provide emergency power. The challenge is that ZESCO Limited has been running very low in terms of diesel stocks because of the poor state of the Chama/Lundazi Road. Transporters refuse to take diesel to Chama. So, in the last three months, the hospital has been affected and economic activities in Chama have grounded to a halt.

Madam Speaker, we even lost Mr Mtonga, a police officer from Chama District Council, who was on a life-support system. Power from Malawi went off and he died, and we have had several of those cases. The hon. Minister said that the project will be completed in two years, but surely, two years is too long a time. Can he be specific? Let us find an immediate solution because if we do not find one, economic activities will continue being affected and lives will be at stake. The hon. Minister can engage the hon. Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development to ensure that that road is, at least, graded.

Mr Kapala: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for that question.

Madam Speaker, I should state here that the ministry, through the Rural Electrification Authority (REA), will conduct a feasibility study to ensure that a standalone mini grid to supply solar power to the hospital is implemented as soon as possible.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mung’andu (Chama South): Madam Speaker, if I was like the hon. Member for Kalabo Central, I would have cried.

Mr Sing’ombe: Question!

Mr Mung’andu: Madam Speaker, the people of Chama have hope in the hon. Minister, but he said that the project will take twenty-four months, meaning we will have to wait for two years. Twenty-four months or two years for the Government to finish constructing a substation is such a long period of time for our people to continue suffering, because they are suffering. Power only comes for ten to fifteen minutes, from 0300 to 0310.

Hon. Government Members: Question!

Mr Mung’andu: This is the situation in Chama. The power we get from Malawi is unreliable, as the hon. Minister has just stated. Is it possible that this process, since it is just a substation – the Chipata/Lundazi/Chama Transmission Line and other lines taking power to Tembwe and Chikwa Chiefdoms are complete, and it is just substations which are needed. Is there a way that the hon. Minister can, if possible, find three or four contractors so that the people of Chama can have reliable electricity at least within seven to twelve months …

Mr Kafwaya: Or three months!

Mr Mung’andu: … or three months as opposed to twenty-four months? It is possible. That is what other technocrats are saying. Can the hon. Minister be kind enough and tell His Excellency the President, Mr Hakainde Hichilema, that the people of Chama are on their knees. Is it possible that the project can be done in a shorter period than twenty-four months?

Mr Kapala: Madam Speaker, I stated that ZESCO Limited is at the procurement phase to engage a contractor to complete the project. I did not say the project will take twenty-four months; I said within twenty-four months. It could be three months that the hon. Member mentioned, or six months. So, we are trying to sort out the procurement processes so that I come back to the House, and give a definite period for the construction of the substation.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: The hon. Member for Kaumbwe.

Dr Mwanza’s microphone malfunctioned.

Madam Speaker: The hon. Member for Kaumbwe.

Dr Mwanza (Kaumbwe): Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. I had a technical problem with the microphone in the airbus here.

Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister laid down an elaborate process for sorting out the problem of electricity in Chama. Currently, the people of Chama are receiving electricity from the Electricity Supply Corporation (ESCOM) in Malawi. In the ministry’s plan or technical design for the 133 kV transmission line dropping down to a substation in Chama, how has the ministry integrated the utility structures in Chama District with those from the ESCOM in Malawi? How do our structures in Chama District marry with those from the ESCOM in Malawi?

Mr Kapala: Madam Speaker, that is a very loaded technical question. I prefer that the hon. Member of Parliament comes to the ministry and sits with engineers from ZESCO Limited so that they can show him the calculations that have already been done as regards connecting the other houses.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mtayachalo: Madam Speaker, I just want to make an earnest appeal to the hon. Minister. Can he engage his colleague at the Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development because the immediate solution is for ZESCO Limited to receive enough diesel stocks. Then, it will be able to run the generators when there is erratic supply of power from Malawi. However, as I stated earlier, the challenge is that the tankers are refusing to take diesel to Chama because of the poor state of the Chama/Lundazi Road. So, I appeal to the hon. Minister to engage the hon. Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development because I have tried to talk to the Road Development Agency (RDA). This morning, I talked to the board chairman of the RDA so that they find an immediate intervention because economic activities in Chama have come to a standstill.

Madam Speaker: Since it was just an appeal, I am sure the hon. Minister has taken note. Let us make progress.

_______

MOTIONS

RESTRICT MINING RIGHTS FOR PRECIOUS MINERALS TO ZAMBIANS

Mr Kapyanga (Mpika Central): Madam Speaker, I rise according to Standing Order No. 83(2), which states that:

“a Motion that has been deferred may be reintroduced in the same Session of the House at the stage at which it had reached at the time of its deferment”.

Madam Speaker, I request your office to defer my Motion to next week to accommodate the hon. Minister. He is not around and I am sure he will be then.

Madam Speaker, I rise to request that my Motion urging the Government to restrict mining rights to precious minerals to Zambians be deferred to next week Wednesday. I seek your indulgence.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Hon. Government Member: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

Mr Jamba: On a point of procedure, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: What is the point of procedure? Hon. Member for – I cannot see from here.

Mr Jamba rose.

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member for Mwembezhi.

Mr Jamba: Madam Speaker, the hon. Member who rendered the Motion to this House did not render it to the hon. Minister in person, but to the Government. That is whom the Motion is intended for. Procedure must be followed. If he is withdrawing the Motion because it is not based on truth then let it be removed but not on the basis that the hon. Minister is not here. The Government is here.

Mr Kapyanga: Madam Speaker.

Laughter

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Member for Mpika Central. Hold your fire.

Hon. Member for Mwembezhi, you are out of order.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kapyanga: Seven spirits!

Madam Speaker: Order!

The application for –

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Order!

The application for leave is granted. The Motion is deferred.

Question put and agreed to. Leave granted.

Motion, by leave, accordingly deferred.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Can we have order!

REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON LEGAL AFFAIRS, HUMAN RIGHTS AND GOVERNANCE

Ms Lungu (Chawama): Madam Speaker, I beg to move that this –

Rev. Katuta: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member for Chawama, please, proceed.

Ms Lungu: Madam Speaker, I beg to move that this House do adopt the Report of the Committee on Legal Affairs, Human Rights and Governance, for the First Session of the Thirteenth National Assembly, laid on the Table of this House on Thursday, 23rd June, 2022.

Madam Speaker: Is the Motion seconded?

Mr Sing’ombe (Dundumwezi): Madam Speaker, I beg to second the Motion.

Business was suspended from 1640 hours until 1700 hours.

[MADAM SPEAKER in the Chair]

Ms Lungu: Madam Speaker, in accordance with its terms of reference set out in Standing Orders No. 197(f) and 198 of the National Assembly of Zambia Standing Orders, 2021, your Committee on Legal Affairs, Human Rights and Governance considered a topic entitled ‘the growing trend of electoral violence-ahuman rights concern,’ and considered the action-taken report for the Fifth Session of the Twelfth National Assembly.

Madam Speaker, as you are aware, to come up with this report, your Committee requested for written memoranda from stakeholders on the topical issue and undertook local tours to three provinces, namely Lusaka, Copperbelt and North-Western, which accorded your Committee an opportunity to have first-hand knowledge about the growing trend of electoral violence in Zambia and its pervasive role.

Madam Speaker, hon. Members of this august House have had the opportunity to read your Committee’s report. I will highlight only a few concerns encountered by your Committee.

Madam Speaker, from the outset, your Committee wishes to state that it abhors electoral violence. Your Committee is aware that electoral violence has in the recent past characterised general elections and by-elections in Zambia with a far-reaching effect on the lives of the Zambian citizens. In this regard, your Committee, in the strongest terms, denounces electoral violence in any form.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to Section 113 of the Electoral Process Act No. 35 of 2016, the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) is mandated to manage and resolve electoral conflicts in a prudent and timely manner through its conflict management committees. Your Committee is of the view that to effectively manage electoral conflicts, conflict management committees should be replicated at branch, ward and constituency levels where conflicts originate from. Your Committee, therefore, recommends that the Government should progressively create conflict management committees at branch, ward and constituency levels to supplement the work of these committees at national and district levels.

Madam Speaker, your Committee notes that the key pieces of legislation that govern elections in Zambia are adequate. For example, the Republican Constitution, as amended by Act No. 2 of 2016, the Electoral Process Act No. 35 of 2016 and the Electoral Code of Conduct therein provide a reasonable basis to conduct free and fair democratic elections in Zambia. Your Committee, however, is concerned with the lack of enforcement of a legal framework by law enforcement agencies. Your Committee, therefore, recommends for the establishment of effective and efficient collaborative mechanisms between the ECZ and law enforcement agencies for the enhancement of laws that govern elections.

Madam Speaker, your Committee is cognisant of the civil society’s pivotal role in addressing electoral violence through the provision of civic and voter education, and sensitisation on the electoral process to the general populace. Civil society is also key in monitoring and reporting on the credibility of the electoral process before, during and after elections. Your Committee, therefore, recommends that the Government should closely work with civil society to enhance civic and voter education, and to continuously sensitise law enforcement agencies, traditional leaders, the Church, political party leaders as well as party cadres on their role in conflict prevention, management and resolution in the electoral process.

Madam Speaker, according to the African Union (AU) election observer mission final report on the August, 2021 Presidential, Parliamentary and Local Government Elections, poverty and youth unemployment are some of the factors that cause electoral violence. Your Committee is of the considered view that electoral violence cannot be addressed by good laws alone. There is a need to address the socio-economic conditions which drive electoral violence. This is because by pushing the youth into productive spaces, they will be able to generate income for the country and stay away from vices such as electoral violence. In this regard, your Committee recommends that the Government should put in place deliberate measures for the inclusion of the youth in apprenticeship and internship programmes, and meaningful socio-economic and political processes and decision-making.

Madam Speaker, another factor that causes electoral conflict is intra-party electoral violence. Your Committee is of the view that the enactment of legislation to regulate, manage and provide penalties for engaging in electoral violence will help political parties to promote constitutional values and principles, as well as disseminate information on political ideologies and build tolerance for diversity during elections. Your Committee, therefore, recommends that an Act of Parliament should operationalise the constitutional provisions as encapsulated in Article 60 of the Constitution, which inter alia provides for political parties to promote values, promote and uphold national unity and not engage in violence.

Madam Speaker, your Committee is aware that conflicts will always arise where there is competition for public office. Your Committee is of the view that election-related violence can be prevented with the development of an early warning and prevention system which measures can include collection, analysis and dissemination of information on various aspects of a conflict, including root causes, triggers, and factors that perpetuate electoral violence. Your Committee, therefore, recommends that the Government should create an early warning and response mechanism to minimise the impact of electoral violence and formulate clear and actionable intervention options for conflict prevention and management.

In the same vein, Madam Speaker, your Committee is of the view that there is a need to develop a framework to help respond to and manage a conflict before it escalates into violence. In this regard, an entity can be put in place to capture early warning signals and help keep violence and human rights violators out of the political space. Your Committee, therefore, recommends that a national peace architecture or national agency to respond to conflict-related matters similar to the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) be established to identify structural vulnerabilities and put in place mitigation measures as well as guide on how to resolve and prevent conflicts.

Madam Speaker, allow me to render my sincere gratitude to all the stakeholders who made both written and oral submissions. This greatly assisted your Committee in its work.

Madam Speaker, I also thank your Office and the Office of the Clerk for the support and assistance that they rendered during your Committee’s deliberations.

I thank you, Madam.

Madam Speaker: Does the seconder wish to speak now or later?

Mr Sing’ombe: Now, Madam.

Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. I rise to support the Motion to adopt the Report of your Committee on Legal Affairs, Human Rights and Governance, for the First Session of the Thirteenth National Assembly, so ably moved by the Vice-Chairperson.

Madam Speaker, I agree with the mover that, indeed, in the country, we need to put in place measures to ensure that electoral violence does not escalate to higher levels. Like the Vice-Chairperson indicated, your Committee visited Lusaka Province, Copperbelt Province and the North-Western Province. In these provinces, we had public hearings where the people indicated some of the reasons which were making elections violent.

Madam Speaker, the Dag HammarskjöldInstitute for Peace and Conflict Studies on the Copperbelt and in Lusaka indicated that one of the reasons that necessitated electoral violence in this country was poverty, which has reached alarming levels in this country. Most youths participated in electoral violence for economic gain. People submitted the view that in some instances, those who were seen perpetrating violence were immediately rewarded by the leaders. Hence being violent became an opportunity to be identified by successive Governments. People also submitted the view that some of the rewards the youths were given are job opportunities and favour to run markets and, of course, bus stations. So, these are some of the reasons that made our elections violent in this country.

Madam Speaker, at some of the public hearings, people submitted the idea that there was no tolerance among political players. In all these public hearings, we heard that there is intolerance among political players. So, your Committee requests all political parties to orient their members on democracy. Why should we fight because of having political views? People requested that leaders of political parties should orient their political party members and teach them that there is no need for physical violence. In a democracy like ours, we need to compete for ideas but not physical violence.

The other issue that came out so clearly, Madam Speaker, was the ferrying of cadres from other areas to areas where elections were taking place. The people in the areas we went to asked that this be discouraged by all political players. Political cadres should not be ferried from one area to the other.

Madam Speaker, they also submitted the view that, in the past, it was clearly seen that the wearing of party regalia became an issue. Those who did not agree with those who wore party regalia were attacked and they requested that, if possible, the wearing of party regalia be banned during elections.

Madam Speaker, the Public Order Act also came up in most of the public hearings that we had. People indicated that it was unfortunate that in most instances in the past, the police did not allow some political parties to hold public meetings, but others were given an opportunity and space to campaign. They indicated that the unfairness of the police in giving space to political players also resulted in political or electoral violence.

Madam Speaker, the media was also mentioned. The report says that your Committee is greatly concerned that the media in Zambia is polarised and is being used as a channel to promote hate speeches, misinformation, and cyber bullying. Your Committee, therefore, recommends that media organisations comply with the code of professional standards provided under Section 33 of the Independent Broadcasting Authority Act No. 17 of 2002 to ensure balanced coverage.

Madam Speaker, in conclusion, let me place on record my appreciation of the support rendered to your Committee by your Office and the Office of the Clerk throughout its deliberations.

Madam Speaker, I second the Motion.

I thank you, Madam.

Mr Mapani (Namwala): Madam Speaker, thank you very much for according me this opportunity to add two to three sentences to the debate on the Motion on the Floor of this House. Let me also give a plus to the mover and the seconder of this important report being considered on the Floor of the House today.

Madam Speaker, I thank the people and I want to clearly state that this report is very important in that the precedent that was set years back, is something that we ought not to give an opportunity anymore to have life in this Republic of Zambia. From the word go, in the report, your Committee clearly indicated the reasons violence was experienced in this country. To me, it was purely the failure to respect what we call the tenets of good governance and, among them, I will pick two, namely respect of rule of law and respect of human rights.

Madam Speaker, it was purely unbelievable to see some people in a country that has been independent for so many years fail to respect rights and liberties of other citizens. Therefore, those who were afflicted could not actually bear that and that was the reason violence was experienced or seen to have taken place during the election period.

Madam Speaker, the institutions were purely interfered with. There was a lot of interference from the people who had authority over them, and when I say the people who had authority over them, of course not legally, but because of the offices that they managed. They assumed the powers that were not given to them by the Constitution and they proceeded to interfere. That alone weakened the duties of those people who were managing those institutions that were perceived to be lower than the people whose institutions were seen to be supreme. For instance, the courts in the Republic were seen to have failed to deliver some of the issues or judgments in line with the cases that were brought before them, purely because there was a lot of perceived interference from the Executive.

Further, Madam Speaker, the freedom of assembly and the freedom of association, were derogated particularly to the Opposition.  It was always compelled to get permits when that is not actually stipulated in the Constitution, and that alone was a minus. I believe, going forward, as your Committee put it, people, particularly in power, should start respecting the laws of this land. They should realise that to attain democracy, the tenets of good governance are required. It should be seen that there is transparency in the manner we run or manage the affairs of this country.

Madam Speaker, I want to talk about the issue of accountability, because that is one area that those who were in the Opposition then were infringed upon. When they tried to find out how the country was managed, they were always told that they were not in power, which was a minus. So, there should be accountability in all things that are happening in this Republic.

Madam Speaker, on the respect of human rights, which I already mentioned, we want people to enjoy the freedom of association and the freedom of assembly. In other words, civil and political, economic, social and cultural rights ought to be respected. The third generational rights also ought to be respected.

Madam Speaker, even when the date of the election is set in the Constitution, other people still brought up debates that were not necessary. In view of what your Committee outlined and recommended in the report, it is very important that from now onwards, we ought to realise that this country belongs to the citizens of this country. For those who committed atrocities then, it is very important that the law punishes those who violated it wilfully, without taking into consideration what the Constitution of the Republic dictates.

Madam Speaker, with those few words, I thank you.

Ms Phiri (Milanzi): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving me an opportunity to add my voice to the debate on this important Motion on the Report on Legal Affairs, Human Rights and Governance.

Madam Speaker, your Committee’s topical issue of consideration was on the growing trend of electoral violence, which is a human rights concern.

Madam Speaker, may I draw your attention to page seven of the report, which highlights the cause of electoral violence in Zambia. Among the many causes that your Committee highlighted, is the increase in hate speech and misinformation carried out by political party supporters. Another cause is the restrictions placed on the activities of oppositional political parties by state agencies and low stakeholder confidence in the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to conduct impartial and credible elections, and the other cause is the control and monopolisation of the media.

Madam Speaker, your Committee observed and found out that the media was full of hate speech information and bullying messages that were amplified by platforms such as social media.

Madam Speaker, there is selective application and there is lack of consistency in the enforcement of the Public Order Act Chapter 113 of the Laws of Zambia by the ECZ and the Zambia Police Service, and the electoral code of conduct respectively and, in addition, the standard operating procedures of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) guidelines. I agree with the recommendations on the way forward as I support your Committee’s report.

Madam Speaker, your Committee on page thirteen, recommends that there is a need to review the Electoral Process Act and the Electoral Code of Conduct to include additional measures to prevent electoral violence.

Madam Speaker, the Electoral Code of Conduct in its current state is inadequate to prevent electoral violence. It is our hope that once reviewed, it will give more powers to the ECZ and the Zambia Police Service to prevent electoral violence in real time. Political parties should use local structures to campaign and desist from importing cadres to areas where they do not reside. I emphasise that to avoid political violence, there is a need to come up with strict measures that will ensure that political parties do not transport or import cadres to areas they do not live. Importing cadres tends to fan violence because the locals know each other and, in most times, live in harmony.

Madam Speaker, civil society organisations and the media are key players in curbing electoral violence. It is important that the two institutions create platforms were incidents of violence must be reported and perpetrators are named and shamed. Community, religious and traditional leaders should build networks in their communities to monitor acts of violence and come up with appropriate measures to prevent and manage conflicts. This group of leaders has a very important role to play in the electoral process and to ensure that elections are held in a peaceful environment.

Madam Speaker, as I conclude contributing to the debate on this important report, it is important to enhance civic and voter education in the country. This will help the grassroots in conflict management and resolution.

Madam Speaker, with those few remarks, I support the Motion.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Rev. Katuta (Chienge): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving the people of Chienge an opportunity to add a voice to the debate on this very important Motion on the Floor of the House.

Madam Speaker, violence has become like a normal routine in our country when there are political activities, and I will talk about what we can, maybe, do as a nation.

Madam Speaker, I am standing here on behalf of women. Women are misused by male politicians. Women create songs which are so provocative; songs that fuel violence. You will see women singing and dancing to some songs – I have an experience wherefellow women called me names in my constituency and the men were the ones giving them money. Women leave their homes to go and dance for male politicians. I am yet to see a female politician give money to women for them to go and dance,and sing provocative songs, and this should be banned.

Madam Speaker, I agree with the seconder of the Motion who spoke about banning political party regalia because I have been an advocate of such a move. Most young men are unemployed and when they are given regalia which makes them look like soldiers or police officers, there is a spirit that comes upon them. They feel like they are trained soldiers and want to be at the frontline of a battle. So, their behaviour changes when they put on that regalia. However, when they are not wearing that regalia, they act just like normal human beings. So, I feel the wearing of party regalia must be banned in our country.

Madam Speaker, musicians are also culprits who contribute to violence through the songs they sing. There was a song where somebody was using very rude words and I remember, in the past, some advertisements were banned from being aired on Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC). We should collectively come together as a House and say that this cannot continue in our country.

Madam Speaker, I also want to talk about the infringement of human rights, the freedom of association, the freedom of affiliation, and the freedom of speech. When you go to a radio station – Kalungwishi FM Radio Station in Chienge was gutted because some politicians did not want it to be used by other politicians. So, we should look at this issue seriously. Any Zambian aspiring to become a Member of Parliament, a President or whatever position in the political arena should be free to walk to the ZNBC or any media house to advertise himself/herself by selling his/her ideas on how he/she will help people in a constituency or country.

Madam Speaker, this brings me to an issue that has already been talked about. On my way back from Chienge, in Sonshi, I saw cadres with vehicles with flags of the Ruling Party and I told myself that they were definitely imported cadres andI wondered where they were going? I thought, maybe, somebody important was going to that direction. However, I was told there was a by-election in Sonshi, but where were those people coming from? Those people were definitely going to cause havoc there because they are not known. I know my neighbour and there is no way I can harm him/her. So, the importing of cadres to an area must be banned and condemned by well-meaning politicians.

Madam Speaker, I also want to talk about democracy. We want to introduce electronic voting when we know very well that most people in Chienge are less educated, and who is going to benefit from electronic voting? When some people have their preferred candidate, definitely to defend their interest, they will resort to violence. So, as politicians, before we talk about changing the electoral code of conduct on the Floor on this House, these are the things that we should look at. Then, we can make submissions to those who craft the laws of the country.

Madam Speaker, I also want to talk about media houses and journalists. Some journalists and media houses decide to support a particular political party and Independents, like some of us, wonder where to go becausewe alsoneed to sell ourselves. In the meantime, those who have money go to some media houses and use unpalatable language in order for them to get votes from the public. I think we should change the laws and come up with stiffer laws for everybody and not only those in the Opposition.

In fact, Madam Speaker, it was shameful to see some people using otherpeople’s children to fight political fights while they had left their children at home. Other people’s children got hurt and you come here proudly as an honourable person, it is wrong. Next time, take your children; let them get involved as well. I saw young people beinghacked in a vehicle; it is wrong. We are human beings and we are parents. However, just because you want to become a Member of Parliament, you allow that violence and come here smiling.

Madam Speaker, allow me to say, shame on you. Not you, Madam Speaker, ...

Laughter

Rev. Katuta: …but those Members of Parliament who came in this House knowing very well that they used violence to ascend to power.

Ms Tambatamba: Tekanya!

Rev. Katuta: No, it is true. You know yourselves; you had other people’s children killed just because you wanted to come to this House. This must stop. Let us respect the young people who are poor. We should stop taking advantage of them just because they are not employed.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker: Today, I am blessed.

Ms Halwiindi (Kabwe Central): Madam Speaker, thank you so much.

Madam Speaker, allow me to thank the mover and the seconder of the Motion, to adopt the report of your Committee on Legal Affairs, Human Rights and Governance.

Madam Speaker, electoral violence is a very bad device that we all saw in the recent past, which did not only affect the people of Zambia, but productivity. We saw people from workplaces not delivering effectively because many human rights were being violated. Freedom of association or freedom of assembly was equally affected, and even belonging to a political party and the colour of the regalia was a problem.

Madam Speaker, in work places, even the colour of clothes one wore or the file one presented to the boss was an issue. So, this affected the operations of civil servants, which in turn affected service delivery by the workforce. Violence became so bad such that as women, we got worried because even children were affected. We saw young people become violent in nature. Even unborn children were affected because if a mother is feeling bad, the state of the mother affects even the unborn child. So, this is where we were heading to as a country,where even unborn children would already be violent. That was a very sad situation in which we found ourselves.

Madam Speaker, your Committee talked about having a sufficient legal framework. I think there is already a sufficient legal framework because even the Constitution provides that we need to uphold human rights, the freedom of association andthe freedom of movement.

Madam Speaker, in the recent past, we saw electoral violence where even innocent churches were affected. When they assembled for church activities, they were questioned as to what they were doing or the messages they were giving to the people. That is where we were heading to. No one was free to assemble in any way. I commend your Committee and we should speak strongly against electoral violence. As Zambians, we should all speak against this device.

Madam Speaker, I commend your Committee for talking about empowering the youths because they are a major grouping that was used in electoral violence.Ithank God for the New Dawn Government because it is intensifying skills training and that is why it allocated money, through the Constituency Development Fund (CDF), to deal with those who have not been to school and those who failed to finish Grade 12. When we empower them, we will deter them from being cheated during elections because they will be busy doing construction works in our constituencies. So, we should make sure that our youths are empowered so that they should not be used for electoral violence. I thank your Committee for mentioning that we need to empower our youths. This is very important.

Madam Speaker, thank you very much for according me this opportunity to support this Motion. Going forward, I thank God that the New Dawn Government came in power at the right time to heal this nation. We have had many by-elections, but we have not heard of electoral violence, and this is good governance.

Madam Speaker, I thank the mover and the seconder. The people of Kabwe are very happy because they are now free to move and do business.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Chanda (Kanchibiya): Madam Speaker, thank you so much for allowing the people of Kanchibiya to support this very important Motion, and I commend the mover of this Motion as well as the seconder.

Madam Speaker, it is very important for us to not only look at the symptoms, but to understand why African politics play out the way they play and why there is every need for us as Africans to relook at the governance models we have adopted for ourselves or which we have embraced from our colonial masters.

Madam Speaker, democracy learned itself to so many definitions and schools of thought. Sometimes, there is a temptation to believe that democracy is uniform, that there is a one size fits all approach to democracy, and that western democracy is universally accepted as being democracy. However, when we find that certain standards that we would embrace as being part of western democracy, we would be atvariance with what our norms and cultures are as a people. For example, we have issues around freedom of expression tolerated under western democracy, which if transplanted and planted into a Zambian context, would amount to defamation. So, there is every need for Africa, and Zambians in particular, since we are talking about our country, to relook at our laws and understand what it is that we are calling democracy because what is acceptable elsewhere may not be acceptable in our environment.

Madam Speaker, in speaking to the need for us to redefine our governance models, and in redefining the political space, it also becomes important to dive into our history as a nation. We realise that some of the issues the report speaks to, were spoken to during the first republic, the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) era, the Patriotic Front (PF) era and will still be spoken to under the United Party for National Development (UPND) era.This must bring us to a point where we must agree that there is every need to change certain things about who we are, and the governance models we have adopted for ourselves going forward.

Madam Speaker, with your indulgence, in adding to this very important report, I propose that the political space ought to promote the need for competition of ideas and to move away from the adversarial tendencies we have in our political space. There is every need for us to institutionaliseour political parties. The challenge we have had is that political parties are not institutions, the more reason we have alitanyof political parties in this country, and it speaks to one thing that our political parties are not institutionalised. The moment we institutionalise political parties, we move away from so many syndromes, including what may be called the big man syndrome which has killed political parties not just in Zambia, but on the continent of Africa.

Madam Speaker, the lack of ideological space within our politics is a cancer we have to deal with as we engage in our political space and going forward. The lack of ideology makes it very easy for someone to jump ship or say what they do not believe in and flip flop the next day. If our politics and democracy are to mature, we ought to ensure that there is ideology filling up the political space.

Madam Speaker, we have young people in this country from all the ten provinces of Zambia, who would join politics not because they believe in any ideology but ideology is missing. They will jump from one political party to the other. When the MMD Government came into office, it inherited the vigilantes from the United National Independence Party (UNIP) Government and when it left power, the PF came into power and inherited a number of cadres from the MMD. The PF is out of power, and the UPND is going to inherit a number from the PF.

Interruptions

Mr Chanda:Madam Speaker, I am making a statement of fact. Politics are about numerical growth because you keep on attracting different elements to political institutions. The reason this happens is that, in most instances, there is a quest for economic opportunity by young people, not because they are inspired by ideology, but the need for economic opportunity. The moment we speak to the need to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor, and speak to the needs of the young people –

Madam Speaker, we currently have a scenario where 350,000 young people graduate from higher institutions every year joining the labour market. The labour market has no capacity to absolve – 350,000 young people by five years, we are speaking about 1.7 million plus young people. So, a political party that seems to be making it and making headlines will drift there for various reasons.

Madam Speaker, there is every need for us to ensure that we mature the political space. In maturing the political space, there is a need for us to agree that we can disagree without becoming personally disagreeable. That will be a hallmark of maturity and ideas can compete in the political space without the adversary I versus you approach.

Madam Speaker, I do not want to continue repeating myself at the risk of sounding like a broken record. May I simply say that the people of Kanchibiya support this Motion with one specific recommendation that the problem is not in the symptoms, but in the root cause. What we need to do is to summon our nation to look at the models that we have adopted for ourselves as we reform to become a better country.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

The Minister of Local Government and Rural Development (Mr Nkombo): Madam Speaker, thank you for the opportunity.

Madam Speaker, let me declare interest first, that in the political party that I serve, I am the Chairman for elections. Therefore, he who feels it, actually knows it.

Madam Speaker, I thank your Committee for the effort it made. I would have preferred that it engages a barometer to see where the trend is taking us. Is the situation regarding the subject of electoral violenceescalating or declining?

Madam Speaker, your Committee cited poverty as one of the reasons there is an increase in electoral violence. I politely beg to differ that poverty alone can never be the reason thereis electoral violence because Zambia is not the poorest country in the world. There are poor countries and countries that historically have been at war with themselves, like Angola, Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), who conduct elections in a civil manner.

Madam Speaker, your Committee omitted, either deliberately or otherwise, the issue of appetite for absolute power as one of the reasons for electoral violence. The appetite we saw in the recent past, in the last ten years, where the work of the Government was streamlined to buying people, councillors and Members of Parliament, creating by-elections on one hand and manufacturing violence on the other.

Madam Speaker, when the State is wrong, it is dangerous to be right, and I have argued that many times. Sometimes, it is best to hit the nail on the head. Many times, state institutions such as the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) and the Zambia Police Service have argued that the problem is between the Patriotic Front (PF) and the United Party for National Development (UPND). Some of the areas those who debated before me scratched upon, were on the erosionof the functions of state institutions such as the ECZ and the Zambia Police Service, the application or misapplication of the Public Order Act and fair treatment of political players.

Madam Speaker, it was common to make a schedule for campaigns during elections and the police and the ECZ wouldapprove it,which is not in the law.However, on the day you wantedto have a meeting, the PF and its leadership with the help of the police, would seize the ground you were supposed to have a meeting, and they would say it was because the Head of State was in the area. Why ignore those things? When the State is wrong, it is dangerous to be right.We, leaders, must take responsibility of the violence that used to happen.

Madam Speaker, tomorrow, there will be by-elections in Mongu and Mkushi. This is why I began my debate by saying that your Committee should have told us whether this situation, regarding electoral violence, is escalating or improving. I argue that it is improving because there is no report of violence in Mkushi. We have reached a climax and campaigns are closing in seven minutes time, and there are no adversarial reports of blood and extrajudicial killings from the police. We mustbe very fair with one another, and honest with each other.

Madam Speaker, the Public Order Act was very maladjusted in its application. The police were members of a political party. They always sided with a political party. Why? This was because of the appetite,the threat and the submission to anybody who didnot believe in what the Ruling Party believed in. The police were scared to talk to us. Even to just greet, “Commissioner, how are you? Awe tatulefwayauku–we do not want to lose our jobs”, because there was autocracy, let us just face it as it is.

Madam Speaker, some media houses tried their best. Do you remember how the owners of Komboni Radio were brutalised by state agents, the police and the PF? Talk to LesaKasoma, and she will tell you the story. Do not forget how The Postnewspaperwas closed and how Prime Television was obliterated. If you went to Sun FM Radio in Ndola, they will tell you a story of how our current President hadto be evacuated through the roof, when police officers were there.

Madam Speaker, elections are not an event; they are a process. When one wants to go to a radio station to canvass for votes, a horde of known cadres helped by the police would appear to disrupt. They say those who live by the sword, die by the sword. Today, those who brutalised Mr Hichilema and made him go out through the rooftop of Sun FM Radio are not there. That was a political process. The timehas come for us to be honest with one another. Your Committee should have been easy and said, this subject has come a minute too late because now, there is respect for the rule of law.

Madam Speaker, everybody is free. In the past, it was common for leaders such us here, to propagate hate speech and tribalism. Hegemonic behaviour wasthe order of the day. How can your Committee blame regalia? That is a world convention. Go to the United States of America (USA) and you will find that they are flying flags for the Democrats and the Republicans. They wear T-shirts anywhere. However, it was a taboo to walk in a United Party for National Development (UPND) T-shirt or a Manchester United T-shirt. You risked your life going to the Lusaka Inter-City Bus Terminus. They would kill you: the people who represent these ones here (pointing to the left).

Interruptions

Mr Kampyongo: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

Mr Nkombo: Sometimes, it is better to say it as it is. The PF was totally intolerant and a state institution –

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Minister and hon. PF Whip!

Hon. Minister, please, do not point fingers. Just debate without pointing fingers.

Mr Nkombo: Madam Speaker, I gladly withdraw my fingers.

Madam Speaker, there was a place called Kamugodi, which was a gas persecution chamber. You could not go to Soweto Market if you were not – people were removed from trading places on account of political affiliation or belief. They had closed the space. Today, the space is open. Give me the name of one person who has been beaten for walking around in public wearing a T-shirt of the defunct PF.

Hon. Government Members: No one!

Mr Kampyongo: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

Mr Nkombo: It is best to face the truth as it is all the time. Your Committee should have been able to say that the situation has now improved ...

Madam Speaker: Order!

Mr Nkombo: ... and we hope for the better so that we can coexist, even if we do not believe in the same political ideals.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Madam Speaker: A point of order is raised.

Mr Kampyongo: Madam Speaker, we have a report from your Committee, which is very well tabulated and balanced. Your Committee cited the areas it visited. In here, we must be peace builders. I know there are hon. Colleagues in here who are still on nolle prosequi for heinous crimes that happened. We are not helping by trying to pretend to be angels. Those of us here, must be speaking to our people to desist from violence, because violence –

Interruptions

Madam Speaker: Order!

Hon. Members, please, let us listen and not debate from our seats.

Hon. Member for Shiwang’andu, proceed.

Mr Kampyongo: Madam Speaker, we were listening to the hon. Minister and we were hoping that he would reflect and debate the report, but it appears that he did not even read the report, which is elaborate. He went on to cite things that were not even in the report. However, was he in order to declare a party that is ably represented in this august House as defunct?

Madam Speaker, I seek your serious guidance. We need to respect each other. They are in the Government today, ...

Hon. Member: Which Standing Order?

Mr Kampyongo: ... and this is what multiparty politics are all about, and we are here representing the Patriotic Front (PF) Party, proudly so. Is he order to declare the PF defunct or does he have an idea of how they want to make the party defunct? I seek your serious guidance.

Madam Speaker: Order!

In terms of the election violence, I think the report covers that, so the hon. Minister was just giving instances where electoral violence occurred and was saying that the Committee should have gone further to say whether the violence has decreased or increased. However, with regard to the comment that the Patriotic Front (PF) is defunct, the hon. Minister was not in order because the PF is not defunct. It is ably represented here by sixty hon. Members of Parliament. So, rest assured that the PF is not defunct, hon. Member for Shiwang’andu. Let us maintain peace. We are one family.

The Vice-President (Mrs Nalumango): Thank you, Madam Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to add a voice to the adoption of the report this afternoon.

Madam Speaker, let me start by commending your Committee on Legal Affairs, Human Rights and Governance for the work done during the First Session of the Thirteenth National Assembly.

Madam Speaker, as noted by your Committee, elections play a critical role in a country’s democracy. Therefore, electoral violence has no place in a well-functioning democratic system. The increase in electoral violence cases should concern all of us. All political players and, indeed, this august House which is comprised of political players, and the entire society should condemn electoral violence.

Madam Speaker, I understand the passion with which some hon. Members debated because, indeed, he who feels it knows it. I stand here on behalf of the Government, therefore, to say, yes, we read the recommendations from your Committee’s tours, and its observations and recommendations on this subject matter.

Madam Speaker, I just want to add a few words to what has been debated in this august House.

Madam Speaker, laws are very important. It is a fact that the starting point of any discussion at any national or international level is the law. I am, therefore, delighted that your Committee observed that the legal framework governing elections in the public is adequate and provides a reasonable basis to conduct free and fair democratic elections. If this is so, why then was violence seen throughout the country? If it was law – today, I will tell you that the United Party for National Development (UPND) or the New Dawn Government under President Hakainde Hichilema, has promised the Zambian people that it will govern by the rule of law. So, that has completely been taken care of. We are a Government of laws. However, what I heard from other colleagues, particularly the last person who spoke, is that if it has nothing to do with the law because the law is adequate, then, it means that enforcement is not there.

Madam Speaker, truly, we must accept that there was no professionalism by those who were supposed to enforce the law, and that goes to the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) and the Zambia Police Service. Therefore, as the Government, we are bringing back confidence in these institutions by allowing them to function professionally because, then, people will have trust that we are taking care of everybody. However, the manner in which things were going meant that it was basically up to a political party or individuals to try to survive in a democratic space that was swallowed while the enforcers were simply watching. That is what happened, but this Government will govern by the rule of law.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

The Vice-President: Madam Speaker, indeed, every Zambian should denounce electoral violence, as I have said. Your Committee talked about the reasons of violence, some of which I will speak about, but the issue is that violence in the country was not just electoral. I know we are talking about electoral violence but this was just a culmination of the violence that was becoming a culture from the intolerance of political thoughts and ideas. This violence was not limited to electoral violence. It was in markets and all over, except at that moment, things blew up at the same time.

Madam Speaker, if you look at violence, I think we neglected the values and principles in our Constitution and people lived without laws. There was no law so people were just violent, and particularly, political party violence spread not only to other political parties but ordinary citizens in the markets. It was on anybody who was anywhere near those who had authority and were in power.

Madam Speaker, under this Government, I assure you that this will not continue. Signs have already been shown. We have no violence in markets, where they practiced violence. Some people went out during elections and axed other people who had not offended them. That is gone. As you have heard, today, when there are elections, there is no violence. The Government of the day is committed to ensuring that laws are followed and violence is not institutionalised in political parties and we know those.

Madam Speaker, it is true that the one of the causes of violence is unemployment and poverty. Some young people who were not employed were abused but this Government is working hard to create jobs so that there is decency in the way people live. Mr Hakainde Hichilema, the President of the Republic, is working hard, day and night, to ensure that the young people who are unemployed and were abused by those who had power and money are no longer abused.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

The Vice-President: Jobs are being created. This is not in doubt. We already have forty-two on the list and many other people are getting employed. Very soon, there will be more jobs as the chief marketing officer brings in a lot of investment in the country.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

The Vice-President: Madam Speaker, we are going to continue working on bringing peace to the country, but there is a need to ensure that the principles and values of our country are disseminated and inculcated in the hearts of our people; it is very important. We have lost humanity. Some political parties, in the last ten years, lost the Zambian culture and that is why we are coming in under the Office of the Vice-President, which is the custodian of values and principles, to address this. Therefore, right now, we are engaging the entire society, including political parties. We have to engage even those who were very violent on how we will handle this issue, and we are also engaging the Church. Violence is not just physical, and there was a lot of abuse in the heartsof our Zambian people.

Madam Speaker, Ican speak about the so many issues that have been raised, but as the Government, we arecommitted to addressing them. We have seen the report and gotten the recommendations and, truly, we are going to look atthem. We will see the laws that need to be amended as proposed in your Committee’s report.

Madam Speaker, on behalf of the Government, may Iretaliate that the New Dawn Government of His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zambia, does not condone electoral violence in any form or manner. Therefore, the Government will consider your Committee’s observations and recommendations, and will continue working hard to ensure that the democratic system of the countryis one to behold and emulate. Watch the space, no more violence.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Lungu: Madam Speaker, I thank all the hon. Members who debated, and I will stick to the report.

Madam Speaker, one of the main concerns that kept on coming up as we were interacting with the stakeholders was that the social economic conditions are the main contributors to electoral violence. So,I think let us not deceive ourselves thatpoverty and unemploymentis not a factor. It is a factor because it was based on research from the stakeholders.

Madam Speaker, the Government as well as, we, hon. Membersof thisHouse, must now focus on implementing laws that will allow the young people of this country to be innovative and entrepreneurialbecause this will create jobs and people will move away from the mentality of Boma iyanganepo, meaning that the Government must take care of everything. It is not theGovernment that should take care of everything; it is the people. The young people of this country are actually bright andinnovative. If we support them, we will see that most problems will be taken away.  Consequently, this will really help us get rid of electoral violence, as much as it may not end right away.

I thank you, MadamSpeaker.

Questionput and agreed to.

REPORT OF THE PLANNING AND BUDGETING COMMITTEE

Mr Chaatila (Moomba): Madam Speaker, I beg to move that this House do adopt the Report of the Planning and Budgeting Committee, for the First Session of the Thirteenth National Assembly, laid on the Table of the House on Friday, 17thJune, 2022.

Madam Speaker: Is the Motion seconded?

Amb. Kalimi (Malole): Madam Speaker, I beg to second the Motion.

Mr Chaatila: Madam Speaker, your Committee considered the topic ‘maximising domestic revenue mobilisation vis-à-visnon-tax revenue, amidst high public debt obligations’. In carrying out this important task, your Committee sought both written and oral submissions from various stakeholders, both private and public.

Madam Speaker, from the outset, allow me to state that tax revenue has faced many challenges, resulting from the high tax rates, multiplicity of taxes and the contracting economy that the country experienced, partly as a result of the effects of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Therefore, non-tax revenue has emerged as a compliment towards increasing domestic resource mobilisation.

Madam Speaker, allow me to highlight some of the salient issues observed by your Committee during its deliberations with stakeholders.

Madam Speaker,your Committee observed that the Mineral Royalty Tax, is the largest contributor to non-tax revenue. Your Committee acknowledges the fact that although the re-introduction of the Mineral Royalty Tax, as a deductible expense for Corporate Income Tax assessment purposes, is associated with revenue loss, the measure is envisaged to spur investment in the sector. This should in turn create jobs and increase revenue in the form of taxes, in the long run.

Madam Speaker, in order to hedge against further revenue loss, as a result of transfer pricing and other illicit financial flows, your Committee strongly recommends that the Government should invest in capacity building for institutions responsible for the auditing of mining companies, in order to safeguard against vices that erode both tax and non-tax revenue.

Madam Speaker, another matter that your Committee notes are the weak internal controls and manual collection of some user fees and fines, which are a recipe for revenue leakages. Your Committee, therefore, urges the Government to intensify internal control measures to mitigate against revenue leakages in collecting agencies. Your Committee further recommends that the Government should strengthen efforts aimed at completely migrating from manual revenue collection processes to an automated system, in order to not only enhance efficiency but also transparency and accountability.

Madam Speaker, in the Zambian context, your Committee notes that the potential for local authorities to collect non-tax revenue and guarantee self-sustainability is immense and would relieve the Government of the constant financial support for its operations, if robust measures were to be implemented.

Madam Speaker, in order to boost non-tax revenue contribution to the Treasury, your Committee urges the Government to consider piloting centralised collection of non-tax revenue in selected local authorities by a suitable institution. This is with a possibility of rolling out the measure, countrywide, depending on the outcome of the pilot.

Finally, Madam Speaker, your Committee had an opportunity to undertake a benchmarking tour to the Republic of Uganda. One notable robust measure observed is the centralisation of non-tax revenue collection by the Uganda Revenue Authority, which revenue is subsequently remitted to the consolidated fund. The centralisation includes revenue from the local Government. This measure culminates into increased transparency, accountability, and significant increase in the collection of non-tax revenue which was demonstrated by the attainment of the set target in three months after implementation.

In conclusion, Madam Speaker, I wish to place on record sincere appreciation to the stakeholders who provided information to your Committee and the Government of the Republic of Uganda for accepting to host your Committee at short notice. Gratitude is also extended to the Office of the Clerk for the support rendered to your Committee.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker:Does the seconder wish to speak now or later.

Amb. Kalimi: Now, Madam Speaker.

Thank you very much, Madam Speaker, for this opportunity to add my voice to the debate on this important report.

Madam Speaker, thank you again for granting me the opportunity to second the Motion ably moved by the Chairperson of your Committee. Let me also take this opportunity to thank all the members of your Committee for the valuable contribution they made throughout your Committee’s programme. They were very committed.

Madam Speaker, the report before this House comprises submissions from the stakeholders on the typical issues and findings of your Committee’s local and foreign trips that it undertook. Since the hon. Members have had an opportunity to go through the report, I will restrict myself to certain issues which are not highlighted in the report.

Madam Speaker, firstly, I will look at the balance between non-tax revenue enhancement and the citizens’ welfare.

Madam Speaker, with the growing demand for public service delivery, every source of revenue counts. However, while your Committee supports the need to increase the share of non-tax revenue to the total domestic revenue and the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), it is observed that most sources of non-tax revenue such as fees, charges and fines tend to overburden citizens and, consequently, have negative implications on their livelihoods. The cost of living is high, and if we did this, we would overburden the citizens already struggling to meet their demands. Therefore, your Committee recommended that in the quest to enhance non-tax revenue, the Government must strike a balance between revenue enhancement and safeguarding the welfare of ordinary citizens.

Madam Speaker, on the single licensing system, your Committee observed with concern the burden placed on the tourism operators and players in the manufacturing sector due to the administrative and regulatory requirements by statutory bodies such as the Zambia Tourism Agency (ZTA), the Patents and Companies Registration Agency (PACRA), the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) and the Zambia Bureau of Standards (ZBA).

Madam Speaker, while it is critical for the Government to attain standards and compliance and at the same time raise non-tax revenue, your Committee contended that the multiplicity in licensing has potential to discourage new business entrants and sustainability of existing business. In this regard, your Committee urged the Government to review the licensing mechanism to promote single licensing so as to encourage compliance, while at the same time reduce the cost of business due to licensing and licence renewal requirements.

Another factor, Madam Speaker, is automating payments of all non-tax revenue. During the tour in Uganda, your Committee observed that the measure to fully digitalise payment of non-tax revenue in Uganda has significantly contributed to a drastic increase in the collection of non-tax revenue and improved transparency and accountability. Your Committee really appreciated how this method is working in Uganda.

Madam Speaker, with the observed fall in non-tax revenue collection below the set budget target for the first quarter of 2022, your Committee expressed concern that if robust measures are not implemented, efficient programme implementation may be threatened in the 2022 Financial Year. In this regard, your Committee strongly urges the Government to leverage the growing financial inclusion in the country and fully automate the payment of non-tax revenue, including simplifying payments through the use of mobile phones that are easily accessible, so that even people in Kaputa, Malole, and Shang’ombo can have access to this platform. Your Committee recommends that automation should also be extended to non-tax revenue assessment and billing. This measure will indisputably boost non-tax collection.

In conclusion, your Committee expresses its gratitude to you, Madam Speaker, for the support you gave it both on the local trips and international trips. Furthermore, this Committee commends you and thanks you for the support rendered to it as it undertook various activities of this programme.

Madam Speaker, with those remarks, I second the Motion.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mukosa (Chinsali): Thank you, Madam Speaker, for giving me an opportunity to make a few comments on the debate on this report, on the Floor of this House, presented by the Chairperson of the Planning and Budgeting Committee. 

Madam Speaker, your Committee considered a very important and interesting topic which relates to domestic revenue mobilisation, vis-à-vis non-tax revenue. As a country, our debt is very high such that we cannot manage to pay it just by using the revenue that we generate from the taxes that we collect. Therefore, it is very important that we combine tax revenue with non-tax revenue so that we pay the debt and reduce it to sustainable levels.

Madam Speaker, your Committee identified that one of the reasons non-tax revenue is very low, that is, 20 per cent of the total domestic revenue, is the lack of effective supervision of state-owned enterprises (SOEs). The Zambian Government has assets and companies that have the capability to generate revenue and profits that can be used to declare dividends which will be income to the Government. If the Government gets those dividends, it can invest them and earn interest on the investment. However, that is not happening because most of our companies are making losses and are surviving on the support they are getting from the Government.

Madam Speaker, the Government cannot continue giving funds to companies that are failing to be efficient and make profits. If it continues doing this, it means it is just funding the lavish lifestyle of the directors of some of these companies which have the capability to make profits but are not making profits. Therefore, there is a need for our Government to find a way of ensuring that these companies are supervised effectively, be it through the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) or any relevant supervisory body, so that they can make profits and declare dividends to the Government for it to use that money for investments so that it can earn interest or spend the money on other socio-economic issues.

Madam Speaker, we have some assets in foreign countries, for example, in New York, in the United States of America (USA). We have a building there which is being underutilised. You gave us a privilege and sent us to study the mortgage financing project. We found that if we finance that permanent mission building in New York and build a proper building at the place where the building is, we can generate revenue in terms of rent, which can be enough to help finance, maybe, four or five other missions such as the mission in New York itself, in Washington, and other missions in other countries. In its current state, the building is small and dilapidated. In short, I can just say that it is being underutilised.

Madam Speaker, the other challenge that we have currently, when it comes to the collection of non- tax revenue, is that we are using manual systems. The challenge of using manual systems is that it increases the chances of revenue leaking, thereby resulting in collecting less revenue from the non-tax revenue avenues and it also increases the chances of corruption. Therefore, there is a need for the Government to ensure that it champions the digitalisation of the collection of revenue from non-tax revenue avenues so that it can seal the leakages and help our country to collect more revenue that will contribute towards the domestic resource mobilisation.

Madam Speaker, with those few remarks, I thank you for giving me this opportunity.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mtayachalo (Chama North): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving me this opportunity. In supporting the adoption of this report, I would like to take this opportunity to thank your Committee for having done a good job.

Madam Speaker, I will quickly talk about the report. Your Committee has outlined that there is a need to reform the Mineral Royalty Tax. The Mineral Royalty Tax has been a contentious issue with respective Governments and I think a consistent and predictable mining regime is a cornerstone for the growth of the mining industry. I would like to see a situation in which the country achieves a win-win situation, where both the investor and the country benefit. As a country, we need to take advantage of the rise in copper prices so that this nation can derive maximum economic benefits from our mineral wealth. Therefore, it is important that the Government ensures that we put in place policies which are consistent and can also promote foreign direct investment (FDI) and local investment.

Madam Speaker, I want to talk about the performance of state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Your Committee highlights the challenges facing SOEs in this country. Zambia has been independent for fifty-eight years now. It is very sad that our SOEs are failing to perform. Why are they failing to perform fifty-eight years after Independence? We must find out why SOEs are not performing. In China and other countries, SOEs are doing business world over. There are construction companies which are parastatal companies in China, but why have we failed to ensure that our companies stand aloofinstead of depending on the National Treasury for bailout packages.

Madam Speaker, one of the root cause SOEs are failing to perform is the appointment of the position of Chief Executive Officer (CEO). There is a higher turnover in terms of CEOs. When a CEO puts up a business plan, after three to five years, he/she is out of employment, especially where there is change of Government. This has been the root cause SOEs have been failing to perform. Further, appointments to these parastatal organisations are not being done on merit because we rarely see advertisements in newspapers which deserving Zambians should apply for. However, we just hear Mr A or B has been appointed to be managing director of such a company. Are we very sure that those are the best brains to run those companies? So, it is important that we review the way we appoint CEOs in SOEs, if at all these companies are to operate efficiently and profitably.

Madam Speaker, I worked for ZESCO Limited and, in 1991, we had one of the best managing directors, Mr John Kaluzi. Today, no one has beaten his record at ZESCO Limited, but he was removed because of change of Government and he went to Botswana where he became the CEO for the Botswana Power Company. So, his providing a service in Botswana. Many Zambians are in the diaspora because they are not respected in their own country, as they say, a prophet is not respected in his own country. So, we must ensure that appointments to these positions are done purely on merit not on political or tribal inclination.

Madam Speaker, lastly, on Mopani Copper Mines, your Committee has ably highlighted the challenges facing Mopani Copper Mines. The Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines – Investment Holding (ZCCM-IH) Limited took over the operations of Mopani Copper Mines and, for me, that was a window of opportunity for this country to own the mines. We have been crying all this time that we are not deriving maximum economic benefits from our mineral wealth. So, I urge this Government that it is important that we help Mopani Copper Mines and the US$300 million which they want to invest and expand the operations of Mopani Copper Mines – If Mopani Copper Mines is recapitalised, I am very sure that it can be able to generate even the US$1.4 billion, we are trying to seek from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Madam Speaker, I take this opportunity to appeal to Zambians to invest in the mining industry. There are wealthy Zambians in this country, but why have they not taken advantage to invest in the mining industry? We heard some leaders say they can help Zambia pay the Eurobond. Why can they not take advantage and invest in Mopani Copper Mines and provide US$300 million to it so that we run our own mines than always depending on foreign investors who, when they come here, externalise their money to their countries of origin, and at the end of the day, we get very little as a country.

Madam Speaker, with those few remarks, I support the adoption of this report.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Wamunyima (Nalolo): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving me an opportunity to add my voice.

Madam Speaker, first of all, I thank your Committee for doing a tremendous job in its report. Therefore, due credit goes to the mover, the hon. Member for Moomba, and the seconder.

Madam Speaker, this report is very insightful and we take deep cognisant of page twenty-five where we see the issue of a stable mining regime. The mining policy in this country was very unattractive and that is why we had not reaped the benefits. So, I support what is in the report of making the Mineral Royalty Tax deductible for purposes of income generation.

Madam Speaker, on establishing consistency, other countries in the southern region have taken keen interest in researching in the mining industry, and this is the standard everywhere in southern region. However, the only issue where we may miss it, is the issue of ownership. If a mine does not declare profits, and you own 17 per cent of it, it means all the investments the mine is bringing is not trickling down to the people. Therefore, in as much as the Mineral Royalty Tax will attract foreign direct investment (FDI) in the mining sector, the next discussion we should have is that we progress like other countries in the region, for example, Botswana where the ownership of mines is fifty-fifty. So, if you do not make profits, let us share the dividends fifty-fifty.

Madam Speaker, I draw your attention to page thirty of the report. Mopani Copper Mines has a big problem and it needs a credit facility, but I am more concerned about the US$10 million that it pays to the Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC). Why can Mopani Copper Mines not get electricity directly from ZESCO Limited? There is no need and it makes no logical sensefor ZESCOLimited, which is in all the ten provinces of this country, to supply power to the mines, which are a key driver in the economy, through another agent. As you can see, the underperformance of Mopani Copper Mines is also based on a poor structural framework which needs to be relooked at.

Madam Speaker, I also draw your attention to page twenty-seven of the report.Your Committee has ably noted the issue of licences and all the bureaucracies around the manufacturing sector. For example, the processing of honey requires permits from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Health, and there is a lot of duplication. Therefore, your Committee has well noted that a one-stop licence kind of system is required. In summary, we have no manufacturing sector and part of the reason is the lack of a clear plan of how to unlock all the bottlenecks in the manufacturing sector.

Madam Speaker, I also draw your attention to page twenty-seven of the report, where your Committee talked about the tax regime in the tourism sector vis-a-vis the landing and ground handling rates that are still high. Your Committee notes clearly that there are very low inflows coming into the country through the tourism sector. This is critical, and since the hon. Minister of Tourism is here, he should take these recommendations seriously because the Ministry of Tourism has a lot of infrastructure like the Longacres Lodge and other infrastructure in almost all the provinces. However, these lodges are as good as museums because there is no activity.

Madam Speaker, this report is very important, and I commend the Committee for doing such an extensive job. In supporting the adoption of your Committee’s report, I urge the Government to take keen interest in looking at capacitating the institutions that do audits in the mines. For example, when the time for Value Added Tax (VAT) refunds comes, who checks that all the equipment declared by the mines to have entered the country like bulldozers or whatever equipment, came. We have had a situation in which VAT refunds have taken a huge toll on the revenue of this country because of an auditing system that is not capacitated enough to go into the depths of the operations of every mine. Not just paper trail emailed, we need to strengthen our institutions because, time and again, we read through history that countries that changed the trajectory of their economies did not have strong men but they had strong accountable institutions.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Nkulukusa (Katuba): Madam Speaker, thank you very much for giving me the opportunity tocomment on your Committee’s report. I thank the mover of the Motion, Hon. Chaatila, and the seconder, for a very good report.

Madam Speaker, I want totalk about the issue of non-tax revenue. Currently, the opportunities where we have a lot of growth in collecting revenue is in non-tax revenue. There are many areas we can collect this revenue from, for example, the tourism sector, and the processing of visas brings in a lot of revenue, and also from institutions like the Road Transport Safety Agency (RTSA) and many others. However, like I mentioned earlier when contributing to debate on one of the reports that was presented, we need to implore Information Communication Technology (ICT) to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of collecting this revenue because much of it goes through a lot of pilferages.

We really need to invest and ensure that we put a lot into ICT, to ensure that we grow non-tax revenues. It is proved that if only we put up efficiencies in the non-tax revenues by improving the ICT participation, we can grow the revenue collections by not less than 30 per cent.

Madam Speaker, yesterday, we were looking at the Eighth National Development Plan (8NDP), which looks at the issue of growth. Many times, non-tax revenue is related to the capacity for us to grow productivity. We saw that the secret lies in how we can make the strategic sectors of the economy, that we looked at in the 8NDP,grow and how we envisage them to grow, and the non-tax revenue will also grow.

Madam Speaker, many times, when we concentrate on the strategies that cut costs all the time, and without growing the productivity of the country, we will discover that, sooner than later, we end into trouble because we need to ensure that revenue is generated that can pay the best of the cost. So, we need to ensure that we continue growing our productivity in copper, agriculture, and tourism.For example, if we raise the tourism sector’s contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to around 6 to 7 per cent, then, we will see the level of non-tax revenue also start growing because it will mean more visas being issued and more people paying for other services offered by the Government. 

Madam Speaker, I want to end by imploring the mover of the Motion that the issues embedded in the Mineral Royalty Tax are very good because this is the only way we are going to attract a lot of foreign direct investment (FDI). The biggest element that chases investment is if the tax systems are too harsh and unpredictable. Many times,the issue of price transferring comes about, because the tax regime system is too harsh for companies to make profit.  Since we are so much dependent on FDI, meaning these companies have their head office abroad, and if we become too harsh on the tax regime for these companies, it becomes very easy to do price transferring and to avoid investing in the country for a long period of time. So, this refundable tax makes sure that people who come to invest into our country find a very stable and friendly tax regime and that they bring more money to invest and grow the productivity of the sector.I rest assure you that with such a tax regime, we are going to see huge improvement in the growth of the production of copper because we will see a lot of FDI.

Madam Speaker, without wasting much of your time, this is what I wanted to say as I support the adoption of the report.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.   

Madam Speaker: On account of time, unfortunately, I cannot call any more hon. Members to debate. The hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning will respond.

The Minister of Finance and National Planning (Dr Musokotwane): Madam Speaker, I thank you for availing me this opportunity to provide responses to some of the observations and recommendations of the Planning and Budgeting Committee, tasked to scrutinise the budget performance and maximisation of domestic revenue mobilisation through non-tax revenue, among others.

Madam Speaker, some of the challenges and recommendations as highlighted in the report are as follows:

Policy Consistency

Madam Speaker, it was recommended that the Government must prioritise designing a predictable and stable mining fiscal regime that should be hinged on empirical evidence and benchmarked against industry best practices, while ensuring that the mining sector contributes a fair share to domestic revenue. The status of this is that, as the House may wish to note, the Government reintroduced the deductibility of the Mineral Royalty Tax for Corporate Income Taxfor assessment purposes in January 2022.

Madam Speaker, the House may further wish to note that treating mineral royalty payments as a deductible expense isto avoid double taxation and attract investment in the sector. As I said yesterday, with this, already, we have seen big investments being made. Yesterday, I spoke about the US$1.25 billion being invested byFirst Quantum Minerals (FQM) and many others are coming behind. So, clearly this measure is producing fruits.

Amendments to the Loans and Guarantees (Authorisation) Act

Madam Speaker, the recommendation was that the Loans and Guarantees Act be amended and where are we on this? As you may be aware, the Government is strengthening the legal framework on public debt management through the repeal of the Loans and Guarantees (Authorisation) Act. In order to increase parliamentary oversight on borrowing and enhance transparency in public debt management, the draft Public Debt, Loan and Guarantees (Authorisation) Bill is in the process of being submitted to Parliament for consideration in this meeting.

Clearing Arrears for Both the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) and the Food Reserve Agency (FRA)

Madam Speaker, your Committee recommends an update on the clearance of the remaining balance of K210 million being owed to agro-dealers. Where are we on this matter? The House may wish to note that the Treasury has been off setting arrears for the FISP through financing. I wish to inform the House that in the 2022 fiscal year, the Government will be implementing the FISP using 100 per centof the Direct Input Support (DIS) modality, as we were told earlier this afternoon by the hon. Minister of Agriculture.

Automation of Non-Tax Revenue

Madam Speaker, your Committee recommends that automation should also extended to non-tax revenue assessments and billing as this would boost non-tax revenue collection.

Madam Speaker, the Government has introduced an online payment solution under an integrated system called the Government Service Bus. This system is meant to enhance online quality service delivery as well as improve revenue collection. The implementation of the Government Service Bus is part of the smart Zambia’s transformation agenda aimed at modernisingpublic service delivery through digital technology. It is expected that all institutions that collect non-tax revenue will be incorporated on this system.

As you may be aware, Madam Speaker, these days you can sit in your office or house and pay for your motor vehicle licence without going anywhere. So, this is part of the scheme that is being described.

Madam Speaker, those are the comments I wish to render in response to your Committee, which of course I thank very much for the work that it has done.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Chaatila: Madam Speaker, in winding up this debate, I thank the seconder of this Motion, Hon. Kalimi. I also thank your Committee for the support it rendered during the deliberations of this topical issue we have been looking at. I also thank the hon. Members who have debated; Hon. Mukosa, Hon. Mtayachalo, Hon. Wamunyima and Hon. Nkulukusa. I also thank the hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning for the responses he has given and all the hon. Members who have supported this Motion.

Madam Speaker, lastly, I urge the Executive to consider the recommendations made in this report so that we see how we can move going forward in terms of the implementation of the proposals.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Question put and agreed to.

ADJOURNMENT

The Government Chief Whip and Acting Leader of Government Business in the House (Mr Mulusa): Madam Speaker, I beg to move that the House do now adjourn.

Question put and agreed to.

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The House adjourned at 1857 hours until 1430 hours on Thursday 30th June, 2022.

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